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(2) The notice shall also include a brief description or a
bibliography of the technical documents or other information the department
has identified to date as relevant to the preparation of identification
guidelines for mold.
(3) The notice shall inform persons who wish to submit mold identification of
the name and address of the person in the department to whom the information
may be sent, the date by which the information must be received in order for
the department to consider it in the preparation of the identification
guidelines, and that all information submitted will be available to any
member of the public who makes the request.
12669.15. All identification guidelines for mold published by the department
shall be reviewed at least once every five years and revised, as necessary,
based upon the availability of new scientific data or information on
effective mold identification.
Article 3. Guidelines for Remediation
12669.16.
The department, in consultation with the task force convened
pursuant to Section 12669.3, shall develop and disseminate remediation
guidelines for molds in indoor environments.
12669.17.
(a) Remediation guidelines for mold developed by the department
shall do all of the following:
(1) Provide practical guidance for the removal of mold and abatement of the
underlying cause of mold and associated water intrusion and water damage in
indoor environments.
(2) Protect the public's health.
(3) Utilize and include toxicological reports, the latest scientific data, or
existing standards for the remediation of molds adopted by authoritative
bodies.
(4) Provide practical guidance for the removal or cleaning of contaminated
materials in a manner that protects the health of the person performing the
abatement.
(5) Include criteria for personal protective equipment.
(6) Require utilization of the services of a specifically qualified and
trained professional to conduct the mold remediation.
(b) The department shall consider all of the following criteria when it
develops remediation guidelines for mold:
(1) Permissible exposure limits to molds developed by the department pursuant
to subdivisions (a) and (b) of Section 12669.5 or what constitutes a health
threat posed by the presence of mold, both visible and invisible or hidden,
in an indoor environment, according to the departments guidelines as
developed pursuant to Section 12669.7.
(2) Guidelines for mold remediation adopted by authoritative bodies.
(3) Professional judgment and practicality.
(c) The department shall require a commercial, industrial, or residential
landlord or a public entity that rents or leases a unit or building to
conduct air or surface tests of units or buildings to determine whether the
presence of molds exceeds the permissible exposure limits to mold established
by subdivisions (a), (b), and (c) of Section 12669.5.
(d) The department shall report to the Congress on its progress in developing
the assessment standards for molds by July 1, 2003.
12669.18
(a) The department shall, at the time it commences preparation of
identification guidelines for mold, provide notice electronically by posting
on its Internet Web Site and by publication in newsprint and television
broadcast, nationwide, a notice that informs interested persons that the
department has initiated work on the identification guidelines for mold.
(b) The notice shall also include a brief description or a
bibliography of the technical documents or other information the department
has identified to date as relevant to the preparation of identification
guidelines for mold.
(c) The notice shall inform persons who wish to submit mold
identification of the name and address of the person in the department to
whom the information may be sent, the date by which the information must be
received in order for the department to consider it in the preparation of the
identification guidelines, and that all information submitted will be
available to any member of the public who makes the request.
12669.19.
The department may review, and consider adopting by reference, any
information prepared by, or on behalf of the United States Environmental
Protection Agency or other authoritative bodies, for the purpose of adopting
national remediation standards for mold as long as they are not less
stringent than those already defined.
12669.20.
(a) The department shall make available to the public upon request,
information about contracting for the removal of mold in a building or
surrounding environment, including all of the following:
(1) Recommended steps to take when contracting with a company to remove mold.
(2) Existing laws, regulations, and guidelines developed by the department,
pertaining to permissible exposure limits to mold infestation,
identification, and remediation.
(3) Basic health information as contained in existing mold publications.
(b) All mold remediation guidelines published by the department shall be
reviewed at least once every five years and revised as necessary based upon
the availability of new scientific data.
(c) (1) The Department of Public Health shall develop public education
materials and resources to inform the public about the health effects of
molds, methods to prevent, identify and remediate mold growth, resources to
obtain information about molds, and contact information for individuals,
organizations, or government entities to assist with public concerns about
molds.
(2) The department shall make its public information materials available to
public health officers, environmental health officers, commercial and
residential landlord organizations, homeowner and tenant organizations. These
materials shall be readily available to the general public.
(3) These materials shall be comprehensible to the general public.
(4) These materials shall be made available on the department's internet
website.
Article 4. Disclosures
12669.21.
(a) Subject to subdivisions (b), (c), (d), (e) and (f), a seller or
transferor of residential, commercial or industrial real property, shall
provide written disclosure to prospective buyers as soon as practicable
before the transfer of title when the seller or transferor knows of, or has a
suspicion of, the presence of mold, both visible and invisible or hidden,
that effects the unit or building and the mold either exceeds permissible
exposure limits to molds established by subdivisions (a), (b) and (c) of
Section 12669.5 or poses a health threat according to the department
guidelines as developed pursuant to Section 12669.7.
(b) A seller or transferor of residential, commercial or industrial real
property shall not be exempt from providing written disclosure pursuant to
this subdivision if the presence of mold was remediated according to the mold
remediation guidelines developed by the department pursuant to Section
12669.16.
(c) A residential, commercial or industrial real property landlord or seller
shall be required to conduct air or surface tests of units or buildings to
determine whether the presence of mold exceeds the permissible exposure
limits to molds established by subdivisions (a) and (b) of Section 12669.5.
(d) The requirements of this section shall not apply until the first January
1 or July 1 that occurs six months after the department adopts standards
pursuant to Section 12669.5 and 12669.7 and develops guidelines pursuant to
Section 12669.16.
(e) The requirements of this section as to the notification and disclosure of
mold by sellers or transferors of residential, commercial or industrial real
property shall begin immediately upon passage of this bill.
(f) The written notice required by subdivision (a) shall be provided to
prospective tenants as soon as practicable and prior to entering into a
rental agreement. It will also be provided to current tenants in affected
units as soon as possible.
12669.22.
Any tenant of a residential, commercial or industrial real property
who knows that mold is present in the building, heating system, ventilating
or air-conditioning system, or appurtenant structures or that there is a
condition of chronic water intrusion or flood, shall inform the landlord of
this knowledge in writing within a reasonable period of time. The tenant
shall make the property available to the landlord or his or her agents for
appropriate assessment or remedial action as soon as is reasonably
practicable if the landlord is responsible for the maintenance of the
property. Nothing in this section is intended to any way affect existing
duties and obligations of residential tenants and landlords.
12669.23.
Residential, commercial and industrial landlords, who know, suspect
or have notice that mold is present in the building, heating system,
ventilating or air-conditioning system, or appurtenant structures, or there
is a condition of chronic water intrusion or flood, have an affirmative duty,
within a reasonable and timely period, to assess the presence of mold or
condition likely to result in the presence of mold and conduct the required
remedial action.
12669.24.
The requirements of this article shall not apply to properties that
are leased or rented where the tenant is contractually responsible for
maintenance of the property, including any remedial action.
12669.25.
Any tenant of a residential, commercial or industrial real property
who knows, suspects or is informed that mold is present in the building,
heating system, ventilating or air-conditioning system, or appurtenant
structures or that there is a condition of chronic water intrusion or flood,
and is responsible for the maintenance of the property shall inform the
landlord of this knowledge in writing within a reasonable period of time and
shall correct the condition in compliance with the terms of the contract with
the landlord.
12669.26.
(a) Any public entity that owns, leases, or operates a building
shall provide written notice to all building occupants and prospective
tenants as specified in subdivision (b) when the public entity knows,
suspects, or has reasonable cause to believe, that a condition of chronic
water intrusion or flood exists, or that mold, both visible and invisible or
hidden, is present that affects the building or unit and the mold either
exceeds the permissible exposure limits to molds established by subdivisions
(a) and (b) of Section 12669.5, or poses a health threat according to the
departments guidelines developed pursuant to Section 12669.7.
(b) The written notice required by subdivision (a) shall be provided:
(1) To prospective tenants as soon as possible and prior to entering into any
rental or lease agreement.
(2) To current building occupants in affected buildings or units as soon as
possible.
(c) A public entity shall not be exempt from providing written disclosure to
tenants or prospective tenants pursuant to this subdivision if the presence
of mold was remediated according to the mold remediation guidelines developed
by the department pursuant to Section 12669.16.
(d) The requirements of this section shall not apply until the first January
1 or July 1 that occurs six months after the department adopts standards
pursuant to Section 12669.5 and 12669.7 and develops guidelines pursuant to
Section 12669.16.
12669.27.
Nothing in this article shall relieve a seller, transferor, lessor,
agent, landlord or tenant from any responsibility for compliance with other
obligations, laws, ordinances, codes, or regulations, including but not
limited to the duties outlined in any Sections of United States Law or Code
and any other duties provided for under common law.
12669.28.
(a) Nothing in this article shall affect the existing obligations
of the parties or transferor to a real estate contract, or their agents or
legal representatives, to disclose any and all facts having any material
bearing that affects the value, desirability, or safety, including but not
limited to, the physical conditions of the property and previously received
reports or knowledge of physical inspections of the property.
(b) Nothing in this article shall be construed to change the existing
inspections and disclosure duties of a real estate broker or salesperson as
required by Federal, State or consumer or common law.
12669.29.
The specifications of items for disclosure in this article does not
limit or abridge any obligation for disclosure created by any other provision
of law or duties, or which may exist in order to avoid fraud,
misrepresentation, or deceit in the transfer transaction.
12669.30.
All items subject to disclosure requirements pursuant to this
article shall be subject to enforcement pursuant to Federal and State
Consumer, Criminal, Health and Safety and Environmental laws.
12669.31.
The transferor and/or any listing or selling agent shall be held
legally and financially liable for any error, inaccuracy, or omission of any
information delivered pursuant to this article if the error, inaccuracy or
omission was within the knowledge, or if they had a reason to believe, of the
transferor or the listing agent or selling agent or realtor.
Article 5. Enforcement
12669.32.
Public Health officers, code enforcement officers, environmental
health officers and any other appropriate government entities must respond to
complaints about mold and must enforce standards adopted by the department
pursuant to Section 12669.5 and Section 12669.7 and disclosure requirements
as set forth The disclosure enforcement guidelines shall impose a fine of one
thousand dollars per each incident and one thousand dollars per unit for each
failure to disclose in compliance with this article.
12669.33.
After the Department, pursuant to administrative law procedures,
submits the proposed regulations developed pursuant to this chapter, the
Department, in consultation with representatives from Public Health, Public
Safety, Homeland Security and the Office of the Attorney General and members
of the task force convened by the department pursuant to Section 12669.3,
shall consider and report on the need for the most strict standards for mold
testing professionals and mold remediation specialists.
12669.34.
(a) In the event that the mold was a by product, or the result, of
construction that is in violation of any Federal building, fire,
construction, health, plumbing, electrical or safety codes, and this illegal
construction was known or observed, or should have been known or observed or
seen, during the construction phase by representatives of the municipal
and/or state inspectors, the owner of the property affected shall have full
legal and financial recourse against the municipality and/or state without
any statute of limitations in effect.
(b) Should any portion of the municipality and/or state have been made aware
of the presence or suspicion of mold, in any way and at any time without any
statute of limitations in effect, by the affected owner of the property, or
their representatives, the municipal and/or state government shall be legally
and financially liable in all aspects and loses, injuries or health related
costs or legal costs or other financial loses suffered by the property owner.
(c) Should either subsections (a) or (b) be relevant, the property owner will
be awarded the sum of five hundred dollars, by the municipality or their
agents, for each day that the code violations were known or suspected by the
municipality or their inspectors and the sum of one thousand dollars by the
state or their agents for each day that the code violations were known or
suspected by the state or their inspectors.
(d) This Section shall override any States laws that holds inspectors and/or
the employing municipality or state entity not liable for failures to inspect
or for faulty, inaccurate or incomplete inspections.
12669.35.
This Chapter shall be implemented immediately upon passage.
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