SENATE BILL 969

SB 969

SECTION 1.Section 19891 of the Health and Safety Code is amended to read:19891.

(a) In addition to any other remedies permitted by law, any violations of subdivision (a), (b), or (c) of Section 19890 or Section 19892 shall be subject to a civil penalty of one thousand dollars ($1,000) per opener installed, manufactured, sold, or offered for sale which is not in compliance with Section 19890 or 19892.(b)

In addition to any other remedies permitted by law, any violations of subdivision (d) or (h) of Section 19890 shall be subject to a civil penalty of five hundred dollars ($500) per opener installed and operational, that is not in compliance with Section 19890.(c)

In addition to any other remedies permitted by law, a seller who violates the notice requirements of Section 1102.6 of the Civil Code, relating to automatic garage door openers, shall be subject to a civil penalty of five hundred dollars ($500).(d)

Court proceedings may be initiated by the building department of the local agency with jurisdiction over enforcement of building standards, by affected consumers, or by the district attorney. Civil penalties assessed shall be payable to the local agency initiating the proceedings to enforce this chapter to offset the costs to the agency related to court proceedings. If an affected consumer initiates the proceeding, the civil penalties shall be payable to the consumer.SEC. 2.

Section 19892 is added to the Health and Safety Code, to read: 19892.(a)

On or after July 1, 2019, no person, corporation, or entity shall manufacture for sale in this state, sell, offer for sale at retail or wholesale, or install in this state a residential automatic garage door opener that does not have a battery backup function that is designed to operate when activated because of an electrical outage. The battery backup function shall operate in a manner so that the automatic garage door opener is operational without interruption during an electrical outage.(b)

This section applies to all automatic garage door openers manufactured and sold for use in any residence and other residential

applications of automatic garage door openers manufactured for commercial purposes.(c)

On or after July 1, 2019, no replacement residential garage door shall be installed in a manner that connects the replacement door to an existing residential automatic garage door opener that does not meet the requirements set forth in subdivision (a), regardless of the date of manufacture of the residential automatic garage door opener. The full text of the law copied from

CA Legislative website. https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billTextClient.xhtml?bill_id=201720180SB969

California now requires all new garage door openers to have a battery backup by law, effective July 1, 2019. This law, a result of the disastrous 2017 wildfires, prevents deaths caused by power outage-related door failures—especially among the elderly who struggled with manual opening. All garage door openers sold or installed in California from July 1st must have a battery backup. Failure to comply results in a $1,000 fine per offense. Remember, backup batteries must be maintained and replaced roughly every three years, following DASMA's advice, also backed by the California Senate. Prepare for the transition to mandatory battery backups, which last about 2-3 years. Garage door professionals should educate customers on maintaining these systems. Regular checkups are crucial to ensure the backup works when needed. Customers will enjoy the quieter performance of the new openers with DC motors. Our offered openers comply with the new law, and we advise updating your opener for reliability during power outages and for new garage door installations. For in-depth information on SB 969, consult the DASMA article [Link]. https://www.dasma.com/articles/feature/californiamandatesbbu_fall2018.pdf