Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Senate committee advances bill to require backup power for larger assisted‑living facilities after wildfire and blackout testimony
Summary
SB 435 would require residential care facilities for the elderly (RCFEs) with 16 beds or more to maintain an alternative source of power sufficient for residents’ health and safety for 72 hours; the committee adopted author amendments to extend the implementation date and include microgrids as an option.
Sen. Ahsha Wahab (presented as the author in committee) introduced SB 435 to require residential care facilities for the elderly (RCFEs) with 16 or more beds to have an alternative source of power sufficient to support residents’ health and safety for 72 hours during outages; skilled nursing facilities are already required to maintain backup power for 96 hours.
Supporters described deaths and serious harm tied to power losses during wildfire events and public safety power shutoffs. Anne Belden, a co‑author of a report on the 2017 Tubbs fire, testified about facility failures at Villa Capri in Santa Rosa when power dropped during the Tubbs…
Already have an account? Log in
Subscribe to keep reading
Unlock the rest of this article — and every article on Citizen Portal.
- Unlimited articles
- AI-powered breakdowns of topics, speakers, decisions, and budgets
- Instant alerts when your location has a new meeting
- Follow topics and more locations
- 1,000 AI Insights / month, plus AI Chat
