Alquist-Priolo Earthquake Fault Zoning Act: exemptions.

Under the Alquist-Priolo Earthquake Fault Zoning Act, before approving a project within an earthquake fault zone, a city or county is directed to require the preparation of a geologic report, subject to certain exceptions. Existing law exempts from this requirement the conversion of an existing apartment complex into a condominium, projects for the alteration or addition of any structure if the value of the alteration or addition does not exceed 50% of the value of the structure, and certain projects for alterations that include seismic retrofitting if a city or county, among other things, requires certain seismic retrofitting and prohibits an increase in human occupancy load. This bill would revise and recast the exemptions from the act to, among other things, exempt (1) projects for the alteration of any structure for human occupancy if the value of the alteration does not exceed 50% of the appraised value of the structure and, if the alteration results in a change in the use or occupancy of the structure, the change does not authorize a greater human occupant load and is less hazardous, based on life and fire risk, than the existing authorized use or occupancy of the structure permitted by the city or county with jurisdiction over the structure and (2) projects for alterations that include seismic retrofitting of certain types of structures for human occupancy permitted under specified prior editions of the Uniform Building Code. This bill would specify that terms used in the act that are not defined by the act have the same meaning as those defined in the California Building Standards Code.