Section 3109 — SWIMMING POOLS, SPAS AND HOT TUBS

The design and construction of swimming pools, spas and hot tubs shall comply with this code . [DSA-SS and DSA- SS/CC] Swimming pools utilized for public school purposes shall also be designed, constructed and inspected in accordance with this code.

NOTE: These regulations are subject to local government modification. You should verify the applicable local government requirements at the time of application for a building permit.

The following text in this section contains the statutory language in the Swimming Pool Safety Act (HS Code, §§ 115920 – 115929) that is required to be duplicated and published in California Code of Regulations, Title 24. As such, the section numbers reflect those within the Health and Safety Code.

115920. This act shall be known and may be cited as the Swimming Pool Safety Act.

(Added by Stats. 1996, Ch. 925, Sec. 3.5. Effective January 1, 1997.)

115921. As used in this article the following terms have the following meanings:

(a) “Swimming pool” or “pool” means any structure intended for swimming or recreational bathing that contains water over 18 inches deep. “Swimming pool” includes in-ground and aboveground structures and includes, but is not limited to, hot tubs, spas, portable spas and nonportable wading pools.

(b) “Public swimming pool” means a swimming pool operated for the use of the general public with or without charge, or for the use of the members and guests of a private club. Public swimming pool does not include a swimming pool located on the grounds of a private single-family home.

(c) “Enclosure” means a fence, wall or other barrier that isolates a swimming pool from access to the home.

(d) “ANSI/APSP performance standard” means a standard that is accredited by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) and published by the Association of Pool and Spa Professionals (APSP).

(e) “Suction outlet” means a fitting or fixture typically located at the bottom or on the sides of a swimming pool that conducts water to a recirculating pump.

[Amended by Stats. 2024, Ch 769 (SB 552) Effective January 1, 2025.]

115922 . (a) Except as provided in Section 115925, subject to subdivision (b), and consistent with Section 1596.814, when a building permit is issued for the construction of a new swimming pool or spa or the remodeling of an existing swimming pool or spa at a private single-family home, the respective swimming pool or spa shall be equipped with at least two of the following seven drowning prevention safety features:

(1) An enclosure that meets the requirements of Section 115923 and isolates the swimming pool or spa from the private single-family home.

(2) Removable mesh fencing that meets the ASTM International F2286 standard in conjunction with a gate that is self-closing and self- latching and can accommodate a key lockable device.

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(3) A manually operated or power-operated safety pool cover that is accompanied by a label verifying that the cover meets the speci- fications of the ASTM International F1346-23 standard.

(4) Exit alarms on the private single-family home’s doors and windows that provide direct access to the swimming pool or spa without any intervening enclosure. Whenever any door or window is opened or left ajar, exit alarms shall make either an audible, continuous alarm sound or a repeating verbal warning, such as a notification that “the door to the pool is open.” An exit alarm may be battery operated or connected to the electrical wiring of the building.

(5) A self-closing, self-latching device with a release mechanism placed no lower than 54 inches above the floor on the private single- family home’s doors providing direct access to the swimming pool or spa.

(6) An alarm in good repair and operable as designed that, when placed in a swimming pool or spa, will sound upon detection of acci- dental or unauthorized entrance into the water. The alarm shall meet and be independently certified to the ASTM International F2208 standard that includes surface motion, pressure, sonar, laser and infrared type alarms. A swimming protection alarm feature designed for individual use, including an alarm attached to a child that sounds when the child exceeds a certain distance or becomes submerged in water, is not a qualifying drowning prevention safety feature.

(7) Other means of protection, if the degree of protection afforded is equal to or greater than that afforded by any of the features set forth above and has been independently verified by an approved testing laboratory as meeting standards for those features estab- lished by ASTM International, the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, or another nationally recognized standards development organization, and the feature is accompanied by a label verifying that the protection meets those standards.

(b) The requirements of subdivision (a) are not satisfied by any of the following: (1) An exit alarm and a self-closing, self-latching device on the same door. (2) An exit alarm and a door latch on separate doors. (3) A safety pool cover and an alarm described in paragraph (6) of subdivision (a).

(c) Before the issuance of a final approval for the completion of permitted construction or remodeling work, the local building code offi- cial shall inspect the drowning safety prevention features required by this section and, if no violations are found, shall give final approval.

[Amended by Stats. 2024, Ch. 745 (AB 2866) and Ch 769 (SB 552) Effective January 1, 2025.]

115923. An enclosure shall have all of the following characteristics:

(a) Any access gates through the enclosure open away from the swimming pool, and are self-closing with a self-latching device placed no lower than 60 inches above the ground.

(b) A minimum height of 60 inches.

(c) A maximum vertical clearance from the ground to the bottom of the enclosure of two inches.

(d) Gaps or voids, if any, do not allow passage of a sphere equal to or greater than four inches in diameter.

(e) An outside surface free of protrusions, cavities or other physical characteristics that would serve as handholds or footholds that could enable a child below the age of five years to climb over.

(Added by Stats. 1996, Ch. 925, Sec. 3.5. Effective January 1, 1997.)

115924. (a) Any person entering into an agreement to build a swimming pool or spa, or to engage in permitted work on a pool or spa covered by this article, shall give the consumer notice of the requirements of this article.

(b) Pursuant to existing law, the Department of Health Services shall have available on the department’s Web site, commencing January 1, 2007, approved pool safety information available for consumers to download. Pool contractors are encouraged to share this informa- tion with consumers regarding the potential dangers a pool or spa poses to toddlers. Additionally, pool contractors may provide the consumer with swimming pool safety materials produced from organizations such as the United States Consumer Product Safety Commission, Drowning Prevention Foundation, California Coalition for Children’s Safety & Health, Safe Kids Worldwide, Association of Pool and Spa Professionals, or the American Academy of Pediatrics.

(Amended by Stats. 2006, Ch. 478, Sec. 3. Effective January 1, 2007.)

115925. The requirements of this article do not apply to any of the following:

(a) Public swimming pools.

(b) Hot tubs or spas with locking safety covers that comply with the ASTM International F1346 standard.

(c) An apartment complex or any residential setting other than a single-family home.

[Amended by Stats. 2024, Ch. 769 (SB 552) Effective January 1, 2025.]

115926 (a) The State Department of Social Services shall prescribe drowning prevention safety standards governing all swimming pools and other bodies of water located at facilities regulated by the department, regardless of whether the swimming pool is also subject to this article. The department may adopt higher drowning prevention safety standards than the requirements of this article. The depart- ment shall adopt regulations required by this section by January 1, 2027.

(b) Notwithstanding the rulemaking provisions of the Administrative Procedure Act [Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 11340) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code], the State Department of Social Services may implement, inter- pret, or make specific this article by means of interim licensing standards or similar written instructions until regulations are

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adopted. These interim licensing standards or similar written instructions shall have the same force and effect as regulations until January 1, 2027.

[Added by Stats. 2024, Ch. 745 (AB 2866) Effective January 1, 2025.]

115927. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, this article shall not be subject to further modification or interpretation by any regulatory agency of the state, this authority being reserved exclusively to local jurisdictions, as provided for in paragraph (7) subdivi- sion (a) of Section 115922 and subdivision (c) of Section 115925.

[Amended by Stats. 2018, Ch. 957, Sec. 13. (SB 1078) Effective January 1, 2019.]

115928. Whenever a building permit is issued for the construction of a new swimming pool or spa, the pool or spa shall meet all of the following requirements:

(a) (1) The suction outlets of the pool or spa for which the permit is issued shall be equipped to provide circulation throughout the pool or spa as prescribed in paragraphs (2) and (3).

(2) The swimming pool or spa shall either have at least two circulation suction outlets per pump that shall be hydraulically balanced and symmetrically plumbed through one or more “T” fittings, and that are separated by a distance of at least three feet in any dimension between the suction outlets, or be designed to use alternatives to suction outlets, including, but not limited to, skimmers or perimeter overflow systems to conduct water to the recirculation pump.

(3) The circulation system shall have the capacity to provide a complete turnover of pool water, as specified in Section 3124B of Chapter 31B of the California Building Standards Code (Title 24 of the California Code of Regulations).

(b) Suction outlets shall be covered with antientrapment grates, as specified in the ANSI/APSP-16 performance standard or successor standard designated by the federal Consumer Product Safety Commission, that cannot be removed except with the use of tools. Slots or openings in the grates or similar protective devices shall be of a shape, area and arrangement that would prevent physical entrap- ment and would not pose any suction hazard to bathers.

(c) Any backup safety system that an owner of a new swimming pool or spa may choose to install in addition to the requirements set forth in subdivisions (a) and (b) shall meet the standards as published in the document, “Guidelines for Entrapment Hazards: Making Pools and Spas Safer,” Publication Number 363, March 2005, United States Consumer Product Safety Commission.

[Amended by Stats. 2012, Ch. 679, Sec. 2. (AB 2114) Effective January 1, 2013.]

115928.5. Whenever a building permit is issued for the remodel or modification of an existing swimming pool, toddler pool or spa, the permit shall require that the suction outlet or suction outlets of the existing swimming pool, toddler pool or spa be upgraded so as to be equipped with antientrapment grates, as specified in the ANSI/APSP-16 performance standard or a successor standard designated by the federal Consumer Product Safety Commission.

[Amended by Stats. 2012, Ch. 679, Sec. 3. (AB 2114) Effective January 1, 2013.]

115929. (a) The Legislature encourages a private entity, in consultation with the Epidemiology and Prevention for Injury Control Branch of the department, to produce an informative brochure or booklet, for consumer use, explaining the child drowning hazards of, possible safety measures for, and appropriate drowning hazard prevention measures for, home swimming pools and spas, and to donate the document to the department.

(b) The Legislature encourages the private entity to use existing documents from the United States Consumer Product Safety Commission on pool safety.

(c) If a private entity produces the document described in subdivisions (a) and (b) and donates it to the department, the department shall review and approve the brochure or booklet.

(d) Upon approval of the document by the department, the document shall become the property of the state and a part of the public domain. The department shall place the document on its Web site in a format that is readily available for downloading and for publi- cation. The department shall review the document in a timely and prudent fashion and shall complete the review within 18 months of receipt of the document from a private entity.

(Added by Stats. 2003, Ch. 422, Sec. 3. Effective January 1, 2004.)