Senate committee advances bill to require backup power for larger assisted‑living facilities after wildfire and blackout testimony
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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 fire; she described residents who were nonambulatory, problems with unlocked electronic doors, inability to charge medical devices and at least one death attributed to respiratory failure after a power outage. Representatives from the California Alliance for Retired Americans and the Alzheimer’s Association emphasized that residents sheltering in place rely on continuous power for ventilation, refrigeration of medication, medical devices and communication devices.
Opposition testimony came from LeadingAge California and other providers, which said the capital cost of generators and compliance would be high, risk closures of facilities, and fall disproportionately on residents through higher fees. Opposition witnesses presented cost estimates based on skilled nursing facilities’ recent generator spending (estimates ranged widely, including per‑facility costs reported between $500,000 and $2.5 million); they said a small subset of facilities had not yet met skilled nursing backup requirements and expressed concern about feasibility in dense urban areas.
The author offered two amendments on the record: (1) extend the implementation date by one year to January 1, 2028, to give facilities more time to comply; and (2) broaden the definition of “alternative source of power” to include renewable energy microgrids as a compliance option. The committee chair noted the bill’s public‑safety rationale and the author argued the proposal targets larger facilities (16 beds or more) and primarily affects corporate operators and chain‑run homes.
After debate about costs, implementation timing and alternatives (microgrids, grant support and state coordination), the committee recorded a recommendation to send the bill to Appropriations as amended. The committee vote on the recommendation was unanimous among members present (5–0). The bill’s fiscal effects and any potential grant or subsidy mechanisms were left to the Appropriations review.
