HomeMy WebLinkAboutCC 11-04-2025 Item No. 11 Municipal Code Amendments for California Buildings Standards Code and Fire Code_Supplemental ReportCC 11-04-2025
Item #11
Municipal Code
Amendments for
California Buildings
Standards Code and
Fire Code
Supplemental Report
COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT
CITY HALL
10300 TORRE AVENUE • CUPERTINO, CA 95014-3255
TELEPHONE: (408) 777-3308 • FAX: (408) 777-3333
CUPERTINO.GOV
CITY COUNCIL STAFF REPORT
SUPPLEMENTAL 1
Meeting: November 4, 2025
Agenda Item #11
Subject: Introduce an ordinance for Municipal Code Amendments to Title 16, Buildings
and Construction, of the Cupertino Municipal Code adopting the California Buildings
Standards Code and Fire Code, for consistency with Assembly Bill 130 and making
local exceptions as mandated by the State of California
Recommended Action: 1. Introduce and conduct the first reading of Ordinance No. 25
-2278: “An Ordinance of the City Council of the City of Cupertino Amending Chapters
16.02, 16.04, 16.06, 16.10, 16.16, 16.20, 16.24, 16.40, 16.42, 16.54, 16.58, 16.62, 16.64, 16.68
and 16.80 of Title 16 of the Cupertino Municipal Code adopting the California Building,
Residential, Electrical, Mechanical, Plumbing, Energy, Wildland-Urban Interface, Fire,
Historical Building Code, Fire, Existing Building Code, Green Building Standards Code,
Referenced Standards Code, Uniform Housing Code, and Property Maintenance Code
with certain exceptions, deletions, modifications, additions and amendments”;
2. Adopt Resolution No. 25-092 making factual findings with respect to the local
geological, topographical, and climatic conditions necessary to make local amendments
to the California Building Standards Code.
3. Find the project is exempt from CEQA pursuant to 14 California Code of
Regulations Sections 15061(b)(3) and 15308.
Background:
An updated staff report has been prepared to provide additional clarification and detail.
The revised report, provided as Attachment D, supersedes the previously published staff
report.
Attachments Provided with Original Staff Report:
A.Draft Ordinance amending Title 16 of the Cupertino Municipal Code – Redline
B.Draft Ordinance amending Title 16 of the Cupertino Municipal Code – Clean
C.Draft Resolution including Justification and Findings for Local Amendments
Attachments Provided with Supplemental 1:
D. Updated Staff Report.
COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT
CITY HALL
10300 TORRE AVENUE • CUPERTINO, CA 95014-3255
TELEPHONE: (408) 777-3308 • FAX: (408) 777-3333
CUPERTINO.GOV
CITY COUNCIL STAFF REPORT
November 4, 2025
Subject
Amendment to Title 16, Buildings and Construction, of the Cupertino Municipal Code adopting
the California Building Standards Code and Fire Code and making local amendments as
mandated by the State of California.
Recommended Action
1. Conduct the first reading of Ordinance No. 25-XXX: “An Ordinance of the City Council
of the City of Cupertino Amending Chapters 16.02, 16.04, 16.06, 16.10, 16.16, 16.20, 16.24,
16.40, 16.42, 16.54, 16.58, 16.62, 16.64, 16.68 and 16.80 of Title 16 of the Cupertino Municipal
Code adopting the California Building, Residential, Electrical, Mechanical, Plumbing,
Energy, Wildland-Urban Interface, Fire, Historical Building Code, Fire, Existing Building
Code, Green Building Standards Code, Referenced Standards Code, Uniform Housing
Code, and Property Maintenance Code with certain exceptions, deletions, modifications,
additions and amendments”;
2. Adopt Resolution No. 25-XXX making factual findings with respect to the local geological,
topographical, and climatic conditions necessary to make local amendments to the
California Building Standards Code.
3. Find the project is exempt from CEQA pursuant to 14 California Code of Regulations
Sections 15061(b)(3) and 15308.
Background
The Building Standards Commission (BSC) mandates the California Code of Regulations, Title
24, also referred to as the California Building Standards Code be adopted by local jurisdictions.
The California Building Standards Code is published in its entirety every three years by order of
the California legislature, with supplements published in intervening years. The local Tri-chapter
Uniform Code Committee (TUCC) is made up of local Building Officials serving communities in
the East Bay (East Bay Chapter), communities along the peninsula from as far north as San
Francisco and as far south as Gilroy (Peninsula Chapter) and communities serving the Monterey
County area (Monterey Chapter) and takes on the responsibility to review and amend the model
codes to enhance regional consistency in application and enforcement of the adopted codes. The
committee develops standardized codes, interpretations and local amendments to maintain
consistency from one jurisdiction to another.
Reason for Recommendation and Available Options
The State of California allows local municipalities to modify the state adopted building standards
to make them more restrictive (not less), provided certain findings are made that the proposed
modifications are necessary due to special local climatic, geological or topographical conditions
that can affect the health, welfare and safety of local residents. Pursuant to Health and Safety
Code 17958, 18941.5 and 13869, Administrative standards do not require a justification or findings
to justify proposed amendments. Building Standards, including Green Building Standards, must
be justified on the basis of one or more local climatic, geological or topographical conditions.
Justifications following the table of amendments to Title 16 of the Cupertino Municipal Code
discuss reasons and justifications for each amendment. Each amendment is identified by the
Section number used in the proposed Ordinance. The Building and Fire codes were made
available to the public in the City Clerk's office prior to the adoption of this ordinance as required
by law.
Local Amendments:
California’s Health and Safety Code (HSC) requires local jurisdictions to adopt the California
Building Standards Code for local enforcement with 180 days after Title-24, California Code of
Regulations (C.C.R.) is published. In adopting Title-24 for local enforcement, the jurisdiction may
amend the standards if such amendments are necessary to address a local geologic, topographic
or climatic condition. Cupertino has worked with other local jurisdictions in the Bay Area to
ensure consistency among amendments as part of the TUCC. The Local Amendments included
in the code adoption package that are recommended to be adopted by City Council are more
stringent than the State Codes and are identified in Exhibit A of the “Matrix Table for Justification
and Findings for Local Amendments”.
Below is a summary of the significant changes to our ordinance:
• The Ordinance reflects the state mandated adoption of the 2025 edition of the California
Building, Residential, Electrical, Mechanical, Plumbing, Energy, Wildland-Urban Interface,
Historical Building, Fire, Existing Building, Referenced Standards and Green Building
Standards codes by a single ordinance.
• The Fire Protection and Life Safety System requirements of Section 903.2 for both the
Building and Fire codes have been updated to better define when fire sprinkler protection
systems are required.
• The administrative portion of the code has been re-organized and cleaned up in the 2025
California Code of Regulations. Revised the ordinance to match.
• The Wildland-Urban Interface requirements that used to be sections within the Residential
and Building Codes has been relocated into Part 7 of the California Code of Regulations –
Title 24.
• This ordinance updates the Cupertino Municipal Code to align with the 2025 California
Energy Code. The 2025 Energy Code now includes electrical "make-ready" provisions that
are functionally equivalent to those the City adopted via Ordinance No. 2265. Consequently,
the majority of the City's local amendments are now redundant with the state baseline. The
proposed amendments therefore repeal these duplicative sections to ensure consistency
with state law while retaining a single, critical local amendment in Section 16.54.020. This
provision preserves the City's existing "make-ready" requirements for non-residential
occupancies, which remain more stringent than the state code.
Building Code Statement of Findings:
Amendments to the 2025 California Code of Regulations are reasonably necessary for the
protection of the public health, safety and welfare, due to the local climatic, geologic or
topographical conditions specified as follows:
The Bay Area region is a densely populated area having buildings constructed over and near a
vast array of fault systems capable of producing major earthquakes, including but not limited to
the recent 1989 Loma Prieta Earthquake. Seismically, Cupertino is situated adjacent to active
earthquake faults capable of producing substantial seismic events. The City has the San Andreas
and Sargent-Berocal faults running through the lower foothills and the Monta Vista fault system
closer to the valley floor area. The Hayward fault is just northeast of the City which would have
a major effect upon the City if it were to rupture. Adding to this threat, the number of vehicles
driven in Cupertino is steadily increasing with commuters driving to and through the City either
to their homes, shopping and/or places of employment. Since the City is divided by major
freeways and expressways, the occurrence of a major earthquake would significantly impact the
ability of fire crews to respond to emergencies should one or more freeway/expressway bridges
collapse or be substantially damaged.
Some of the amendments include structural provisions of the code that were reviewed and
recommended by the TUCC. These proposed amendments are necessary for the protection of the
public health, safety and welfare, due to the local climatic, geologic or topographical conditions.
Fire Code Statement of Findings:
Amendments to the 2025 California Fire Code are reasonably necessary for the protection of the
public health, safety and welfare, due to the local climatic, geologic or topographical conditions
specified as follows:
The City of Cupertino experiences low humidity, high winds and warm temperatures during the
summer months, creating conditions which are particularly conducive to the ignition and spread
of grass, brush and structure fires. Additionally, the City is geographically situated adjacent to
active earthquake faults capable of producing substantial seismic events. Since the City is divided
by an active Union Pacific railway service line (freight), creeks, highways, and other substantial
traffic corridors, the occurrence of a major earthquake would significantly impact the ability of
fire crews to respond to emergencies should one or more bridges collapse or be substantially
damaged. In addition, fire suppression capabilities would be severely limited should the water
system be extensively damaged during the seismic event. Therefore, mitigation measures are
necessary such as: automatic fire suppression systems, communications systems, access to
buildings, seismic protection, safety controls for hazardous materials and other safeguards to
minimize the risks to citizens, firefighters and property due to the severity of the fire threat and
potential response delays.
The local Fire Code amendments to the California Fire Code provided by Santa Clara County
were developed by the Santa Clara County Fire Marshals Association and endorsed by the Santa
Clara County Fire Chiefs Association. The intent is to have consistency in the application of codes
related to fire safety. The amendments have been provided to all cities within the Santa Clara
County Fire Department jurisdiction, as well as surrounding County jurisdictions, to be included
in their respective code adoption package for consistency of enforcement.
Assembly Bill No. 130
As part of the recent state budget, Assembly Bill 130 was enacted, introducing significant new
limitations on the ability of local jurisdictions to amend the California Building Standards Code
(Title 24). This legislation is intended to promote greater uniformity in building standards across
California to address statewide goals.
Effective immediately and extending until June 1, 2031, this legislation prohibits cities and
counties from modifying state building standards except under very specific and narrowly
defined circumstances. This represents a substantial shift from the historical authority granted to
local governments. Previously, jurisdictions like the City of Cupertino could adopt more
restrictive amendments after making express findings that they were reasonably necessary due
to unique local climatic, geological, or topographical conditions.
Under the new framework established by AB 130, the City’s ability to amend state building
standards is now limited to the following exceptions:
• Changes deemed necessary for editorial or clarity reasons.
• Certain technical updates to existing local code requirements.
• The adoption of emergency building standards.
• Specific amendments authorized by the State Fire Marshal.
• Certain other necessary building standards and related state amendments.
• Modifications to administrative practices.
• Standards necessary to incorporate minimum federal accessibility requirements.
Considering this legislation, staff has reviewed all proposed local amendments in this code
adoption package to ensure they are consistent with the permissible exceptions under AB 130.
While this new law constrains the City’s flexibility to address unique local conditions through the
building code, staff remains committed to upholding the highest standards of safety and public
welfare within the legal framework established by the state. We will continue to monitor
legislative developments and engage with state partners on this important issue.
Effective Date of Code Adoption:
July 1, 2025, the BSC published the 2025 edition of the California Building Standards Code. The
2025 California Building, Residential, Electrical, Mechanical, Plumbing, Energy, Fire, Wildland-
Urban Interface Code, Historical Building Code, Existing Building Code, Referenced Standards
Code, and Green Building Standards Codes as mandated by the State of California will become
effective on January 1st, 2026. Plans submitted after January 1st, 2026, will be required to comply
with the new 2025 California Codes along with the local adopted amendments.
Sustainability Impact
The 2025 Green Buildings Standards Code and 2025 Energy Code supports Cupertino’s
sustainability strategy by increasing requirements in several key areas. For example, electric heat
pumps are now the preferred form of space conditioning statewide in the 2025 Energy Code.
Another example is a new requirement for the installation of additional electric vehicle
infrastructure and chargers for residential projects. These statewide changes, in addition to
Cupertino’s locally adopted green building provisions, are important tools to implement the
Climate Action Plan 2.0.
Fiscal Impact
No fiscal impact.
City Work Program Item/Description
None.
Council Goal
Quality of Life, Environmental Sustainability
California Environmental Quality Act
No California Environmental Quality Act impact.
_____________________________________
Prepared by: Sean Hatch, Building Official
Reviewed by: Benjamin Fu, Director of Community Development
Floy Andrews, Interim City Attorney
Approved for Submission by: Tina Kapoor, Interim City Manager
Attachments:
A – Draft Ordinance amending Title 16 of the Cupertino Municipal Code – Redline
B – Draft Ordinance amending Title 16 of the Cupertino Municipal Code - Clean
C – Draft Resolution including Justification and Findings for Local Amendments