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California

Building standards on a California site

California writes more of the job into the code than any other state, and energy compliance, green building, accessibility, wildfire construction and stormwater all land on the contractor holding the permit. These guides cover the Title 24 and CALGreen documents, CASp and accessibility upgrades, Chapter 7A in a wildfire zone, Proposition 65 warnings and the SWPPP on a disturbed site.

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19 guides on this

After you qualifyProposition 65 for contractorsThe warning duty switches on at the tenth employee under Health and Safety Code s.25249.11(b). Covers the safe harbor sign content in 27 CCR 25600, the 60 day notice clock, and the $2,500 per day penalty arithmetic.After you qualifyTitle 24 and CALGreenWhich code edition binds a job is fixed by the permit application date under CBC s.1.1.8, an application lapses 180 days after filing, and CALGreen makes you divert 65 percent of construction and demolition waste by weight.After you qualifyAccessibility upgrades and CASpCBC s.11B-202.4 drags the path of travel into an ordinary tenant improvement, Exception 8 caps that spend at 20 percent of the adjusted construction cost, and the code fixes the six item order the money goes in. Plus what a CASp certificate buys under Civ. Code s.55.54.After you qualifyChapter 7A wildfire zone buildingChapter 7A and CRC s.R337 govern six exterior assemblies: Class A roof, ember resistant vents at 1/8 inch mesh, siding, glazing and decking within 10 feet. Plus the SFM 12-7A test numbers and the 100 foot defensible space under PRC s.4291.After you qualifySWPPP and stormwater pricingThe Construction General Permit switches on at one acre of disturbance, and an acre is 43,560 square feet counted across pad, haul route, stockpile and offsite trench. Who the discharger is, what QSD and QSP time costs, risk levels 1 to 3, and the bid lines.Before you qualifyC-17 GlazingWhat a C-17 covers, plus the two code chapters settled at the order desk: Chapter 7A envelope rules inside a fire hazard severity zone and the Title 24 fenestration line, with four years of experience, two exams and a $25,000 bond.Before you qualifyC-20 HVACThe C-20 route in California: four years, two exams, a $25,000 bond, and the field verification that moved from HERS to the ECC Program on 1 January 2026, where a registered certificate gates closeout and payment follows 30 days later.Before you qualifyC-27 LandscapingThe C-27 route: four years, two exams, a $25,000 bond, the dig ticket before every trench, stormwater coverage at one acre of disturbance, and the 30 day lien window once a Notice of Completion is recorded on a job you just finished.Before you qualifyC-28 Lock and securityThe C-28 route for a trade that crosses the $500 licensing threshold in BPC s.7048 several times a week, with the C-7 boundary, CASp reports as a lead source, 7 day sub payment under BPC s.7108.5 and the 150 percent withholding cap.Before you qualifyC-2 Insulation and acousticalWhat C-2 covers under 16 CCR 832, and why registered installation certificates gate permit closeout since the ECC Program replaced HERS on 1 January 2026. Includes the 82 degree indoor heat trigger, the 20 day preliminary notice, and the $450 plus $25,000 bond.Before you qualifyC-8 Concrete contractor licenseBank, loose and compacted are three counts of the same dirt, and California has no standard method of measurement. Covers the Caltrans and Greenbook pay item families, the one acre SWPPP line, and the five foot trench permit.Before you qualifyC-10 Electrical contractor licenseThe state electrician certification under Lab. Code s.3099 is not the C-10, and the two come from different agencies. Covers Title 24 energy documents, the ECC field verification change on 1 January 2026, the $450 application and the $25,000 bond.Before you qualifyC-12 Earthwork and paving licenseCaltrans charges working days against the controlling activity, and a quantity moving more than 25 percent opens a price adjustment. Covers trench permits at 5 feet, SWPPP coverage at one acre, the $450 application and the $25,000 bond.Before you qualifyC-15 Flooring and floor coveringCDTFA Regulation 1521 sorts what you install into materials, fixtures and equipment, and the sort decides whether tax lands on your cost or on the selling price. Plus the $1,000 deposit cap and 65 percent CALGreen waste diversion.Before you qualifyC-21 Building moving and demolitionThe C-21 scope and the three gates in front of the start date: the Cal/OSHA demolition permit, the hazardous materials survey and abatement, and CALGreen diversion at 65 percent, which is 312 of 480 tons on a real teardown.Before you qualifyC-32 Parking and highway improvementFour specification families measure the same stripe differently, and Caltrans final pay quantities are never remeasured. Covers escalating to the construction midpoint, the 20 percent path of travel cap on accessibility upgrades, and the 20 day preliminary notice on private lots.Before you qualifyC-34 PipelineTrench depth sets the cost: egress at 4 feet, cave-in protection and a Cal/OSHA permit at 5, stormwater coverage at one acre. Covers the 25 percent quantity swing that opens a price adjustment, the 150 percent withholding cap, and five weeks from progress invoice to money.Before you qualifyC-36 PlumbingCDTFA Regulation 1521 measures tax on your $1,500 cost under a lump sum contract or on the $2,400 selling price when the fixtures are stated separately, a $900 swing on one bathroom. Covers the Cal/OSHA trench permit at 5 feet, egress at 4 feet, CALGreen 65 percent waste diversion and the $25,000 bond.Before you qualifyC-43 Sheet metalYou fabricate, so CDTFA Regulation 1521 deems a manufacturing profit into the cost price of every fixture that leaves your shop, and the contract wording decides the tax base before you ever bill. Covers the 136 days from buying coil to retention landing, the 150 percent withholding cap, and Chapter 7A envelope work inside the 100 foot defensible space.

The rest of the California library

Getting and keeping a CSLB licensePreliminary notices and mechanics liens in CaliforniaRetention on California jobsPrevailing wage and public works in CaliforniaCal/OSHA on a construction siteWorkers comp for California contractorsSales tax for California contractorsHome improvement contracts in California
Every guideThe whole California libraryAfter you qualify