Cal Iaq

STATE OF CALIFORNIAHEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES AGENCY                                                                                                                                                                     GRAY DAVIS, Governor

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH SERVICES

1515 CLAY STREET, SUITE 1700

OAKLAND, CA 94612

SB 732 (Toxic Mold Protection Act of)

Implementation Update

March

Many people have contacted the California Department of Health Services (DHS) asking about the status of implementation of the Toxic Mold Protection Act of (SB 732).  This statute, enacted January 1, charges DHS, assisted by a task force of volunteer stakeholders, to undertake a series of complex tasks.  These include determining the feasibility of adopting permissible exposure limits for indoor molds and the development of new standards or guidelines to

         assess the health threat posed by the presence of indoor molds,

         determine valid methods for fungal sampling and identification,

         provide practical guidance for mold removal and abatement of water intrusion,

         disclose the presence of mold growth in real property at rental or sale, and

         assess the need for standards for mold assessment and remediation professionals.

However, the implementation of this statute depends on the provision of funding to accomplish these tasks.

 

Fund for voluntary contributions

The Public Health Protection from Indoor Mold Hazards Fund, authorized by AB 442 (budget trailer bill,) has been established and is ready to accept contributions to help support DHS indoor mold-related activities, including, but not limited to, those mandated by SB 732.  Donations can be made by sending a check payable to the California Department of Health Services (with notation for Mold Fund) to:

Michele Sabel

Environmental Health Investigations Branch

Department of Health Services

1515 Clay Street, Suite 1700

Oakland, CA   94612

We look forward to contributions from many sources that will provide the necessary funds (currently estimated to be $964,000) for DHS to initiate and complete the tasks set forth in the proposed work plan below.  DHS will proceed with implementation when contributions have been received to fully fund the bill requirements.

 

Task Force information

Department of Health Services staff are currently collecting contact information for those who are interested in serving on the task force.  As of March 13, there are 187 individuals who have volunteered for the task force.  If funding becomes available to convene this group, we will contact those on our volunteer list regarding the process to choose those who will actually serve on the task force.

Anyone wishing to volunteer to serve may send his or her contact information (name, mailing address, email address, phone number, fax number) to .  Please indicate any professional affiliation or whether you are a member of a group whose participation on the task force is required by SB 732 (such as homeowners, residential tenants, or others see SB 732 Section 27101.7 for the complete list).

SB 732 also requires DHS to develop public education materials and resources with information about mold health effects, cleanup/removal methods and prevention techniques.  DHS staff routinely review, update and supplement mold documents and links on this website (www.cal-iaq.org/iaqsheet.htm#Mold) to supply readers with reliable information on these topics.

 

Proposed Work Plan for Implementation of SB 732

DHS proposes to implement this work plan provided sufficient donations are made to the Fund.  It anticipates a need for $964,000 to operate its two phases of overlapping tasks covering a 2.5 year period.  Although the plan utilizes the task force as advisory, as required by SB 732, and proposes contract staff and consultants to implement some of its tasks, this plan is not dependent upon the source(s) of voluntary donations for direction.  For an outline of the proposed work plan for implementation of SB 732, click on SB732_2003Mar_workplan.htm.

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