California Mandates Carbon Monoxide Detectors

Homes in California must have carbon monoxide (CO) detectors installed by July 2011 under a new bill signed into law by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger on May 7, 2010.

The latest versions of California building and residential codes already demand that new dwellings in the state come equipped with CO detectors beginning in January 2011; the new law (SB 183) will hold existing homes to the same standard. Exemptions apply to homes that have no fossil fuel-burning appliances, fireplace, or attached garage.

With the signing of the bill California joined 19 other states requiring CO detectors in residential buildings; most of those requirements, including California’s, are enforceable for existing buildings only upon the sale of the home or the application for a building permit for renovations.

– Andrea Ward