Amended  IN  Assembly  April 26, 2018
Amended  IN  Assembly  April 16, 2018

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2017–2018 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill No. 2190

Introduced by Assembly Member Reyes

February 12, 2018

An act to add Section 130061.6 to the Health and Safety Code, relating to hospitals.


LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


AB 2190, as amended, Reyes. Hospitals: seismic safety.
Existing law, the Alfred E. Alquist Hospital Facilities Seismic Safety Act of 1983, establishes, under the jurisdiction of the Office of Statewide Health Planning and Development, a program of seismic safety building standards for certain hospitals constructed on and after March 7, 1973.
Existing law provides that, after January 1, 2008, a general acute care hospital building that is determined to be a potential risk of collapse or to pose significant loss of life in the event of seismic activity be used only for nonacute care hospital purposes, except that the office may grant 5-year and 2-year extensions under prescribed circumstances, except as specified. Existing law requires an owner of a general acute care hospital building that is classified as nonconforming to submit a report to the office no later than November 1, 2010, describing the status of each building in complying with the extension provisions, and to annually update the office with any changes or adjustments. Existing law authorizes certain hospital owners who do not have the financial capacity to bring certain buildings into compliance by the January 1, 2013, deadline to instead replace those buildings by January 1, 2020, as specified.
This bill would require all hospitals with buildings subject to the January 1, 2020, deadline described above to submit a binding written application to the Office of Statewide Health Planning and Development by July 1, 2019, that specifies the seismic compliance method each building will use, as specified. The bill would require the office to grant an additional extension of time to an owner who is subject to the January 1, 2020, deadline if specified conditions are met. The bill would authorize the additional extension to be up to 30 months or 5 years depending on whether the compliance plan is based upon “replacement,” “retrofit,” or “rebuild,” as defined. The bill would authorize the authority to promulgate emergency regulations as necessary to implement these provisions.
Vote: MAJORITY   Appropriation: NO   Fiscal Committee: YES   Local Program: NO  

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:


SECTION 1.

 Section 130061.6 is added to the Health and Safety Code, to read:

130061.6.
 (a) For the purposes of this section, the following terms have the following meanings:
(1) “Rebuild plan” means a plan to meet seismic standards primarily by constructing a new compliant building for use in lieu of an SPC-1 building.
(2) “Removal plan” means a plan to meet seismic standards primarily by removing acute care service beds from the hospital’s license.
(3) “Replacement plan” means a plan to meet seismic standards primarily by relocating acute care service beds from noncompliant buildings into a compliant building.
(4) “Retrofit plan” means a plan to meet seismic standards primarily by modifying the building in a manner that brings the building up to SPC-2, SPC-4D, or SPC-5 standards.
(b) All hospitals with SPC-1 buildings shall submit a binding written application to the office by July 1, 2019, that states which of the seismic compliance methods described in subdivision (a) will be used for each SPC-1 building.
(c) Notwithstanding any other law, including, but not limited to, subdivision (d) of Section 130061.5, for a hospital owner that has been granted an extension pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 130061.5, the office shall grant an additional extension of time in order to comply with the requirements of that subdivision, as set forth in this section.
(d) (1) For a hospital that seeks an extension for compliance based on a retrofit plan, the office shall grant an extension of up to 30 months if the owner agrees in writing to submit a construction schedule and obtain a building permit by April 1, 2019.
(2) (A) The office may grant an extension of the January 1, 2020, deadline specified in Section 130061.5 as necessary to deal with contractor, labor, or materials delays, if any, experienced by the hospital.
(B) If an extension is granted pursuant to subparagraph (A), the owner shall submit a modified construction schedule that shall identify at least two major milestones, agreed upon by the hospital and the office, that will be used as the basis for determining whether the hospital is making adequate progress toward meeting the seismic compliance deadline.
(3) Failure to submit the construction documents by July 1, 2019, or meet the milestones agreed to pursuant to this subdivision shall result in the assessment of a fine of five thousand dollars ($5,000) per calendar day until the documents are submitted or the milestones are met.
(4) Final seismic compliance shall be achieved by July 1, 2022.
(e) (1) For a hospital that seeks an extension for compliance of an SPC-1 building based on a replacement plan, the office shall grant an extension of up to 30 months if the owner agrees in writing to submit a replacement plan by July 1, 2019.
(2) The agreement shall set forth construction schedules, timelines, and major milestones, related to the replacement plan.
(3) Failure to comply with this subdivision or with the terms of the agreement shall result in the assessment of a fine of five thousand dollars ($5,000) per calendar day until the owner complies.
(4) Final seismic compliance shall be achieved by July 1, 2022.
(f) (1) For a hospital that seeks an extension for compliance based on a rebuild plan, the office shall grant an extension of up to five years if the owner agrees in writing to submit the rebuild plan by July 1, 2020, and to submit a construction schedule, obtain a building permit, and begin construction by January 1, 2022.
(2) The construction schedule shall identify at least two major milestones, agreed upon by the hospital and the office, that will be used as the basis for determining whether the hospital is making adequate progress toward meeting the seismic compliance deadline.
(3) Failure to submit the rebuild plan by July 1, 2020, as set forth in paragraph (1), or failure to submit construction documents or meet the milestones agreed to pursuant to this subdivision by January 1, 2022, shall result in the assessment of a fine of five thousand dollars ($5,000) per calendar day until the documents are submitted or the milestones are met.
(4) Final seismic compliance shall be achieved, and a certificate of occupancy shall be obtained, by January 1, 2025.
(g) The duration of an extension granted by the office pursuant to this section shall not exceed the maximums permitted by this section. Moreover, within that limit, the extension shall not exceed the amount of time needed by the owner to come into compliance. The determination by the office regarding the length of the extension to be granted shall be based upon a showing by the owner of the facts necessitating the additional time. It shall include a review of the plan and all the documentation submitted in the application for the extension, and shall permit only that additional time necessary to allow the owner to deal with compliance plan issues that cannot be fully met without the extension.
(h) No extension shall be granted pursuant to this section for SPC-1 facilities unless the owner has submitted to the office, by January 1, 2018, a ready-for-review retrofit plan or replacement plan.
(i) An extension shall not be granted pursuant to this section for seismic compliance based upon a removal plan.
(j) A hospital granted an extension pursuant to this section shall provide a quarterly status report to the office, with the first report due on July 1, 2019, and every October 1, January 1, April 1, and July 1 thereafter, until seismic compliance is achieved. The office shall post the status reports on its Internet Web site.
(k) Notwithstanding any other law, any fines assessed pursuant to this section shall be deposited into the General Fund following a determination on appeal, if any. A hospital assessed a fine pursuant to this section may appeal the assessment to the Hospital Building Safety Board, provided the hospital posts the funds for any fines to be held by the office pending the resolution of the appeal.
(l) The office may promulgate emergency regulations as necessary to implement this section.