When SB326 Works to Keep Our Residents Safe

A case study illustrating that SB326 is a safety law that saves lives.

By Chris Sigler, B.S.C.E., C.D.T.

This article first appeared in the Communicator, Fall 2025 Edition. To view click here.

With an inception date of late 2019, and a formal title of California Civil Code 5551, Senate Bill 326, or more simply "SB326," much debate has swirled around this law. Thankfully, a great many of our associations throughout the state have engaged the appropriate engineering or architectural professionals to perform inspections of their Exterior Elevated Elements ("EEEs") as is required by the law.

The most common complaint that seems to arise about this law involves the additional expense that it creates for our associations, similar to many other laws that our state legislature has passed. There has also been discussion and controversy regarding conflicts of interest, unnecessary work being created by contractors performing inspections, and other criticisms and pushbacks. Despite the various debates, controversies, and pushback (and while there are no specific sanctions or financial penalties for noncompliance) it is important to remember that this is a State of California safety law, born out of a tragic balcony collapse that occurred in Berkeley, CA in 2015, which resulted in fatal consequences.

This article will describe a real-life case that shows that this law is a good thing that can truly keep our residents safe, showing that there is an important and very positive side to the SB326 legislation.

DIFFERING CHARACTERISTICS OF EEES AND THE INSPECTION PROCESS

Some people refer to this law as "The Balcony Bill." However, EEEs are more than that When SB326 Works to Keep Our Residents Safe– elevated structures that are constructed of wood and are more than 6 feet above the ground that protrude from the exterior of a residential building could be a balcony, a stair, stair landing, or a walkway. If an EEE can fall and injure anyone, it requires inspection under the law. The waterproofing must be inspected, and the structural system must be identified and described, including its condition. An estimate of the remaining useful life of both is required in the subsequent written reporting.

EEEs are constructed in various ways, with different characteristics. When the framing is not enclosed or covered with cladding (e.g. wood, fiber cement or stucco, to name a few), distress to the structural system can easily be observed and analyzed. When the undersides are covered and not "open framed," they are considered to be "soffited," which is defined as "the enclosed underside of a structure." In the case of soffited structures such as balconies, stairs, stair landings or walkways, the framing is not as easily inspected, and "destructive testing" is usually performed to allow for the framing to be inspected for decay or other signs of distress. This can be performed either by drilling holes in the soffits to allow for a camera to document the condition of the framing, or by removing the soffit in a more substantial manner.

LOOKS CAN BE DECEIVING

When columns, beams, and guardrails are covered with stucco or other cladding, they may appear to be in good condition to the naked eye, especially if they’ve been painted on a regular schedule. However, water damage, such as wood decay or other biological growth, may be hiding beneath the cladding, out of sight. In the case of stucco, appearances can be particularly deceiving and may look and feel solid and in good condition, by lying beneath the surface may be a highly distressed structural system.

Similarly, when concrete toppings exist on the walking surfaces of a balcony, stair landing, or walkway, there is no way to easily see the waterproofing system that may or may not exist below the concrete. If the concrete has not been replaced in 30-plus years, it is likely that the waterproofing is beyond its useful life and has failed, without any visual signs to see that it has failed.

SB326 AND UNCOVERING HIDDEN DAMAGES – A CASE STUDY FOR SAVING LIVES

In one case in Northern California, two four-story walkway structures were inspected in accordance with SB326. The walkway columns, beams, guardrails, and soffits were all wood framed and clad in stucco, and the walkway surface consisted of a concrete topping. Prior to the inspections, the engineers performing the inspections devised a destructive testing plan to remove stucco in selected areas of a sampling of the columns, stair support beams, soffits, and guardrails to provide key inspection areas that would be most susceptible to damages in the event of water intrusion. Upon initial review, a great deal of decay was observed.

As a result of the initial findings of decay subsequent to the first round of destructive testing being performed, further removal of stucco was required by the engineers, given the severity of the structural deficiencies found. As a result of removal of stucco at a vast majority of columns, stair beams, and many soffit areas, it was found that the structural framing had widespread decay throughout all levels, consistently throughout the structures.

IMMEDIATE SAFETY MEASURES DEPLOYED

Once the severe distress was uncovered and discovered, immediate safety measures were deployed:

1. A stair structure was closed off to avoid use by the residents.
2. Temporary supports were installed as directed by the engineers and inspectors in 17 different locations between two buildings.
3. Temporary stairs were installed for emergency egress where stairs were closed off.
4. The board, management, and residents were informed of the safety issues that existed.
5. The SB326 report was expedited for completion.
6. A structural engineer, geotechnical engineer, and waterproofing consultant were engaged by the association to embark upon repair solutions and structural repair, and waterproofing designs were commenced.
7. The city building official was provided with the SB326 report and was met with to discuss the proactive actions being taken by the association.

NEXT STEPS AND SOLUTIONS

Given that these walkways are the primary method of ingress (entry) and egress (exiting), and due to the temporary safety measures taken by the association, the building official agreed to allow for use of the walkways without "red tagging" by the association. Structural and waterproofing designs are being performed and will be bid for construction in the coming months. Once construction bids are obtained, a full project budget will be formulated. Sadly, the severity of the walkways have placed the association into a situation where the repairs will be funded by an emergency assessment to the residents. The cost for each homeowner will be tens of thousands of dollars, which is necessary to maintain safety, given that these walkways are the residents’ primary method of gaining access and exit from their homes.

On a positive note, the work will provide updated walkway systems that will now be safe and protected from further water intrusion and damage once the work is complete. If properly maintained going forward, the updated structures can have a very long, useful life. The current estimate of timelines for this work is that work should be bid and budgeted by early fall, and work will commence as soon as practicable after the assessment is levied and the project funded. If the project goes as currently planned, it will be completed sometime in 2026.

POSITIVE CONCLUSIONS REGARDING SB326

Despite the trauma of uncovering and discovering decayed wood and unsafe conditions throughout these walkways, the case study provided herein is an example of how the SB326 legislation can save lives. At this property, the stucco coverings were concealing a lot of clearly decayed and failed wood from years and years of water intrusion that was hiding behind the stucco and concrete walkway surfaces. SB326 did its job as a safety law and were it not for the structural engineers’ adept planning and execution of the required inspections, a tragedy could have easily occurred that could have easily resulted in injury, if not fatalities.

Say what you will about the law, it clearly has served and will continue to serve its purpose in cases such as these.

Chris Sigler is the president and founder of C.L. Sigler & Associates, Inc., a Construction Management and Consulting firm that has exclusively served the HOA industry for 24 years. He is a civil engineer by trade with more than 30 years of engineering and construction experience and is actively involved in SB326 inspections throughout the State of California. Chris is certified with the Construction Specifications Institute (CSI) as a Construction Documents Technologist. His firm serves the San Francisco Bay Area in Northern California from their San Jose Corporate office, and the Coachella Valley and Riverside County from their Palm Desert office.