Supervisor Tang’s disclosure ordinance has been revised from its onerous requirements, which were put into effect this year. The new ordinance is an abbreviated version of the old one and requires that owners comply by January 1, 2018.
The new requirements are as follows:
Owners of buildings with three or more dwelling units are required to disclose fire safety information to new residents on or before they begin the live in the building and once a year thereafter.
The Disclosure Information should be disclosed in writing, printed on white 8.5” x 11” or larger and in no smaller than ten point font and should include:
- The location of all fire extinguishers on the resident’s floor and the dates of last servicing
- The location of all emergency exits on the resident’s floor and a statement that they must remain unobstructed
- The location of all fire escapes on the resident’s floor and the dates of last inspection
- The location of the building fire alarm control panel and all manual pull stations on the resident’s floor (if applicable)
- The date when the building fire alarm system was last inspected and tested and confirmation that the building fire alarm systems is certified (if applicable)
- Instructions on how to confirm that the smoke alarms are in working condition, and a statement of when the smoke alarms were last replaced.
- Instructions on how to confirm that the carbon monoxide detectors are in working condition, and a statement of when the carbon monoxide detectors were last replaced.
- Instructions and Web site link to access the fire safety training video that the Fire Department shall post and maintain on the Internet.
- Instructions in English, Spanish, Chinese, and Filipino directing persons who wish to view general fire safety guidance in any of these languages to do so on the Fire Department’s official website and providing a link to this website. The Fire Department shall post such general fire safety guidance on its official website not only in English but also in Spanish, Chinese, and Filipino. Further, to assist owners with providing the required instruction in their Disclosure Information, the Fire Department shall post on its website sample instructions in Spanish, Chinese, and Filipino, that owners may copy and include in their Disclosure Information.
The owner, or owner’s agent, shall also provide an oral explanation of the Disclosure Information to new residents before the new residents commence occupancy in the building, a written copy of the Disclosure Information to residents on or before the commencement of occupancy, and a written copy, updated as appropriate, to all building residents on or before January 31 of each year.
The owner shall retain a copy of the Disclosure Information as a record of compliance for two years.
The owner shall also affix at the main point of entry to the building a sticker that contains the phone number of the owner, property manager or other person who can give the Fire Department or other building inspector prompt access to the building to conduct safety inspections.
The new ordinance is much simpler than the previous ordinance and we should thank our Supervisors for not unnecessarily burdening landlords. If you would like help complying with the new ordinance, please contact us at (415) 648-1516, or ndrees@lingschrealty.com.