The state legislature approved California AB 1738 with a unanimous vote in the Assembly after an earlier 29 to 6 vote in the Senate. The bill now sits with Governor Gavin Newsom, who has until September 30 to sign it into law.
The bill, authored by Assemblymember Juan Carrillo, is meant to tackle bureaucratic delays that drive up the price of home improvements. Homeowners or their contractors can ask for remote virtual inspections for several specific upgrades instead of waiting for a city official to visit their house in person.
The bill covers residential solar panels, home battery storage systems, heat pump HVAC setups, heat pump water heaters, and new roofs. Local governments will still run the inspection programs and they can require an in person visit if a project needs a closer look for safety reasons.
“AB 1738 ensures that the convenience and cost savings of remote inspections will be available to all California families helping them save money on their utility bills by making it cheaper and easier to install home solar and batteries,” said Nick Josefowitz, CEO of Permit Power.
An analysis from the San Francisco Bay Area Planning and Urban Research organization showed that contractors usually wait between two and six hours for a city inspector to show up for a job that takes about fifteen minutes to review. The wasted time ends up costing the homeowner an extra $600 to $1,000 per project, said the analysis.
The change in process is projected to save California families more than $500 million over the next three years. It also lines up with the state’s Extreme Heat Action Plan which calls for faster permitting and inspections for high efficiency heat pumps.
Many parts of the state already do this. At least 19 jurisdictions offer remote inspections, including Los Angeles County, San Diego, Santa Barbara, and Berkeley. In Los Angeles County, building officials say 20% to 40% of all inspections are handled remotely, mostly for things like water heaters and solar batteries. Officials have done hundreds of thousands of these virtual checks over the last seven years without any safety issues.
A massive coalition of more than 50 groups supported the bill. This includes housing advocates like California YIMBY and the Housing Action Coalition, environmental groups like the Natural Resources Defense Council and the US Green Building Council of California, and local leaders including the mayors of San Jose and Oakland.
If Governor Newsom signs the bill, California will be the first state to guarantee rights to remote inspections.
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