Cotati City Council
Agenda Staff Report
Item type: PUBLIC HEARINGS (ACTION)
To: City Council
Subject: INTRODUCTION OF ORDINANCE AMENDING TITLE 14 OF
THE COTATI MUNICIPAL CODE FOR THE ADOPTION OF
THE 2025 CALIFORNIA BUILDING STANDARDS CODE
WITH AMENDMENTS
Date: October 28, 2025
Written by: Eric Seabrook, Building Official
Recommendation
It is recommended the City Council hold a public hearing to introduce and conduct the first reading of an Ordinance to amend Title 14 of the Cotati Municipal Code to adopt the 2025 edition of the California Building Standards Code per the standard three-year cycle, with the updated regulations going into effect January 1, 2026.
Background
The California Building Standards Commission (CBSC) is responsible for adopting the building standards (codes) for the State of California. These standards are typically updated on a “triannual” three year cycle, with individual jurisdictions adopting the updated codes “by reference” after they are adopted at the State level. Very rarely, a need to update the building code more frequently arises, and these updates are generally done through an “intervening code adoption cycle”. The last updates were done in July 2024 as an intervening cycle to accelerate the state’s priorities of reducing greenhouse gas production and increasing the pace of private electric vehicle purchase.
The California Building Standards Code (Title 24) is organized into 13 parts. Local jurisdictions that choose to amend Title 24 are required to adopt this building code by ordinance for local enforcement within 180-days after the updated Title 24 is published by the State, which occurred on July 1, 2025.
In adopting the Title 24 for local enforcement, a local jurisdiction typically may amend the State standards to address local geologic, topographic or climatic conditions, but in no case may these amendments be less restrictive that the State code. The authority to make such amendments is provided through a combination of Government Code Sections; however each amendment requires specific justification. In addition, there are a number of Appendices which are not required to be adopted by local agencies; however their adoption may serve to simplify or clarify local regulation processes by providing consistent regulations across jurisdictions.
For the 2025 update, the State legislature passed AB 130, which limits the ability of local jurisdictions to make changes to the code. The passage of AB 130 restricts jurisdictions from amending local codes until June 1, 2031, to allow the building industry to address the states housing shortage. The potential impact of new legislation, like AB 306 aims to reduce costs and increase housing supply by temporarily prohibiting certain state and local code updates for residential units. Amendments are only permitted if CBSC deems them necessary as emergency standards. The CBSC published the 2025 cycle update in July 2025, and local implementation of the directed code changes is required to be implemented throughout the state on January 1, 2026.
More information on the building code adoption process is available on their website at: https://www.dgs.ca.gov/BSC
Analysis/Discussion
Generally, the main areas of change in the 2025 codes are for clarifications to ensure uniform enforcement of specific requirements and to address changes in the built environment and innovations in technology that had not been addressed in the previous editions of the adopted codes.
To list all changes would be daunting, however a brief list of proposed updates includes;
1. The moderate hazard industrial Group F-1 now includes vehicles that are powered by lithium-ion or lithium metal batteries.
2. Low hazard factory industrial group F-2 and Low Storage S-2. facilities has changed the percentage for the storage of alcohol from 16 percent to 20 percent. The increased alcohol percentage has been deemed no more hazardous that other allowed uses listed as acceptable in the F-2 Group.
3. Carbon monoxide detectors are required in private garages.
The ordinance proposes to update the City of Cotati Building Code to meet the requirements and criteria of the 2025 California Building Code Standards. While the 2025 Code is very similar to the 2022 code, it does include several differences which are summarized below:
1. California's 2025 Building Energy Efficiency Standards (Title 24), which includes expanded use of heat pumps and strengthened ventilation requirements in the living environments.
2. The California Wildland Urban Interface Code, Title 24 Part 7 is now published as a standalone document and addresses construction in the areas that are considered with high fire spread potential. Maps are continuously updated and this standard gives builders a fire-resistant construction standard that has been vetted in the code adoption process.
Separately, the Ordinance proposes to adopt several Appendices to the 2025 California Building Standards Code with the intent to establish clear and consistent regulation of elements outside of the typical building code. Specifically, these amendments will establish (or re-establish) local City of Cotati regulations addressing:
Adopted appendices in the 2025 BUILDING CODE, APPENDICES ADOPTED: APP H, SIGNS; APP I, PATIO COVERS; APP J, GRADING; AND APP Q, EMERGENCY HOUSING.
Adopted appendices in the 2025 RESIDENTIAL CODE, APPENDICES ADOPTED: APP BB,
TINY HOUSES, APP BF, PATIO COVERS, APP BG, SOUND TRANSMISSION APP BO, EXISTING BUILDINGS AND STRUCTURES, APP CI, the Swimming Pool Safety Act.
Adopted appendices in the 2025 GREEN BUILDING STANDARDS CODE, APPENDICES ADOPTED: RESIDENTIAL VOLUNTARY MEASURES, Tier 1 for NEW BUILDINGS AND SUBSTANTIAL REMODELS AND ADDITIONS , INCLUDING DIVISIONS A4.1, A4.3, A4.4 and A4.5 ADOPTED NON-RESIDENTIAL VOLUNTARY MEASURES A5, NONRESIDENTIAL VOLUNTARY MEASURES TIER 1 FOR NEW BUILDINGS AND SUBSTAINAL REMODELS AND ADDITIONS, INCLUDING DIVISIONS A5.1, A5.3, A5.4 and A5.5
Financial Considerations
There are no specific budget impacts associated with the proposed Ordinance adoption, separate from the staff and consultant time required to draft and implement the specific revisions and updates to the Cotati Building Code and adopted Appendices.
Environmental Issues
The proposed building code update ordinance is a general policy making activity, directed by the State of California, governing ministerial level projects and there is no possibility that implementation of this ordinance will have significant effects on the environment in that specified uses are limited to those expressly permitted under the proposed ordinance, and in that the existing Cotati Zoning Code already regulates land use and the proposed uses are subject to compliance with all applicable state laws including environmental review. Therefore, the proposed Ordinance is exempt from CEQA pursuant to Section 15061(b)(3) of the CEQA Guidelines because there is no possibility that the activity may have a significant impact on the environment.