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Following recent amendments to Assembly Bill 2243 (E. Garcia), CSDA changed its position on the bill from oppose to neutral, consistent with its local government coalition partners. The change of position letter on the legislation concerning ultrahigh heat and wildfire smoke standards for the workplace can be viewed here.

Previous versions of this AB 2243 would have directed the Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA) to submit a rulemaking proposal to the standards board and required that board to adopt standards, which would:

• Revise an existing heat illness standard to include an ultrahigh heat standard of 105 degrees and up, with required preventative measures.
• Revise existing wildfire smoke standards set forth in Section 5141.1 of Title 8 of the California Code of Regulations, to reduce the AQI threshold for PM2.5 at which control by respiratory protective equipment becomes mandatory from AQI of 500 to, at a maximum, AQI of 200.
• Make or consider other changes as specified.

Through several rounds of amendments, the bill has been substantially modified. Important provisions include:

• The bill now requires Cal/OSHA to submit heat and wildfire smoke rulemaking proposals to the standards board by December 31, 2025. This is a change from January 1, 2024 –a two-year extension.
• The bill now requires consideration of the proposals, but not a mandate to adopt the proposals.
• The final version of the ultrahigh heat standard required to be considered includes additional mandatory paid preventative cooldown rest periods every hour, readily and immediately available cool water, and increased employer monitoring of employees for symptoms of heat-related illnesses in addition to other protections the division may consider for the standard. It is likely, though not assured, that the ultrahigh heat standard will have limited application to special districts except for potentially duties such as landscaping, construction, and hauling.
• The revision to the heat illness standard to be considered will require employers to distribute a copy of their Heat Illness Prevention Plan (HIPP) to all new employees upon hire and upon training required by Section 3395 of Title 8 of the California Code of Regulations, but no more than twice per year to each employee, and require employers to distribute a copy of the HIPP to all employees at least once on an annual basis.
• The proposed AQI standard to be considered is now at a threshold of 301 for PM2.5 (increased from the initially proposed AQI of 200). The proposed threshold may be lower than 301 AQI or more, as determined by Cal/OSHA. For an AQI above 301 but below 500, the employer need not implement fit testing and medical evaluations or otherwise implement requirements under Section 5144 of Title 8 of the California Code of Regulations.
• Cal/OSHA will also consider additional protections related to acclimatization to higher temperatures.

Based on recent amendments to the bill, CSDA’s lead opposition coalition partner changed its position to neutral. CSDA joined its local government coalition partners, including California State Association of Counties (CSAC) and California Association of Joint Powers Authorities (CAJPA), in changing to a neutral position on the bill.

Stay tuned to eNews and Advocacy News for additional updates.