13260-13263

HEALTH AND SAFETY CODE
SECTION 13260-13263




13260.  This chapter shall be known and may be cited as the Carbon
Monoxide Poisoning Prevention Act of 2010.



13261.  The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:
   (a) According to the American Medical Association, carbon monoxide
is the leading cause of accidental poisoning deaths in the United
States. The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
estimate that carbon monoxide kills approximately 500 people each
year and injures another 20,000 people nationwide.
   (b) According to the United States Environmental Protection
Agency, a person cannot see or smell carbon monoxide. At high levels
carbon monoxide can kill a person in minutes. Carbon monoxide is
produced whenever any fuel, such as gas, oil, kerosene, wood, or
charcoal, is burned.
   (c) The State Air Resources Board estimates that every year carbon
monoxide accounts for between 30 and 40 avoidable deaths, possibly
thousands of avoidable illnesses, and between 175 and 700 avoidable
emergency room and hospital visits.
   (d) There are well-documented chronic health effects of acute
carbon monoxide poisoning or prolonged exposure to carbon monoxide,
including, but not limited to, lethargy, headaches, concentration
problems, amnesia, psychosis, Parkinson's disease, memory impairment,
and personality alterations.
   (e) Experts estimate that equipping every home with a carbon
monoxide device would cut accident-related costs by 93 percent.
Eighteen states and a number of large cities have laws mandating the
use of carbon monoxide devices.
   (f) Carbon monoxide devices provide a vital, highly effective, and
low-cost protection against carbon monoxide poisoning and these
devices should be made available to every home in California.
   (g) The Homeowners' Guide to Environmental Hazards prepared
pursuant to Section 10084 of the Business and Professions Code is an
important educational tool and should include information regarding
carbon monoxide. It is the intent of the Legislature that when the
booklet is next updated as existing resources permit, or as private
resources are made available, it be updated to include a section on
carbon monoxide.


13262.  For purposes of this chapter, the following definitions
shall apply:
   (a) "Carbon monoxide device" means a device that meets all of the
following requirements:
   (1) A device designed to detect carbon monoxide and produce a
distinct, audible alarm.
   (2) A device that is battery powered, a plug-in device with
battery backup, or a device installed as recommended by Standard 720
of the National Fire Protection Association that is either wired into
the alternating current power line of the dwelling unit with a
secondary battery backup or connected to a system via a panel.
   (3) If the device is combined with a smoke detector, the combined
device shall comply with all of the following:
   (A) The standards that apply to carbon monoxide alarms as
described in this chapter.
   (B) The standards that apply to smoke detectors, as described in
Section 13113.7.
   (C) The combined device emits an alarm or voice warning in a
manner that clearly differentiates between a carbon monoxide alarm
warning and a smoke detector warning.
   (4) The device has been tested and certified, pursuant to the
requirements of the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) and
Underwriters Laboratories Inc. (UL) as set forth in either ANSI/UL
2034 or ANSI/UL 2075, or successor standards, by a nationally
recognized testing laboratory listed in the directory of approved
testing laboratories established by the Building Materials Listing
Program of the Fire Engineering Division of the Office of the State
Fire Marshal of the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.
   (b) "Dwelling unit intended for human occupancy" means a
single-family dwelling, factory-built home as defined in Section
19971, duplex, lodging house, dormitory, hotel, motel, condominium,
stock cooperative, time-share project, or dwelling unit in a
multiple-unit dwelling unit building or buildings. "Dwelling unit
intended for human occupancy" does not mean a property owned or
leased by the state, the Regents of the University of California, or
a local governmental agency.
   (c) "Fossil fuel" means coal, kerosene, oil, wood, fuel gases, and
other petroleum or hydrocarbon products, which emit carbon monoxide
as a byproduct of combustion.


13263.  (a) (1) The State Fire Marshal shall develop a certification
and decertification process to approve and list carbon monoxide
devices and to disapprove and delist previously approved devices, if
necessary. The certification and decertification process shall
include consideration of effectiveness and reliability of the
devices, including, but not limited to, their propensity to record
false alarms. The certification and decertification process shall
include a review of the manufacturer's instructions and shall ensure
their consistency with building standards applicable to new
construction for the relevant type of occupancy with respect to
number and placement.
   (2) The State Fire Marshal shall charge an appropriate fee to the
manufacturer of a carbon monoxide device to cover his or her costs
associated with the approval and listing of carbon monoxide devices.
   (b) A person shall not market, distribute, offer for sale, or sell
any carbon monoxide device in this state unless the device and the
instructions have been approved and listed by the State Fire Marshal.