ARTICLE 2.3. Inspection of Homeless Shelters [17974. - 17974.6.]

Cal. Health and Safety Code - HSC 2.3.

in effect

Cal. Health and Safety Code - HSC § 17974. Section 17974.

For purposes of this article: (a) “Department” means the Department of Housing and Community Development. (b) (1) “Homeless shelter” means any of the following: (A) An emergency shelter, as defined in Section 576.2 of Title 24 of the Code of Federal Regulations. (B) An emergency shelter, as defined in subdivision (e) of Section 50801. (C) A navigation center, as defined in Section 50216. (2) “Homeless shelter” does not include emergency shelters that are funded by the program commonly referred to as Project Roomkey administered by the State Department of Social Services. (c) “Local agency” means any city, including a charter city, county, or city and county. (d) “State agency” means the Business, Consumer Services, and Housing Agency. (e) “State funding” means any grant, loan, or other type of financial assistance awarded to a homeless shelter on or after July 1, 2021, from the following sources: (1) The Homeless Housing, Assistance, and Prevention Program (Chapter 6 (commencing with Section 50216) of Part 1 of Division 31). (2) Future one-time state funding for homelessness services.

Cal. Health and Safety Code - HSC § 17974.1. Section 17974.1.

(a) Notwithstanding any other provision of this part, a city or county that receives a complaint from an occupant of a homeless shelter, or an agent of an occupant, that alleges a homeless shelter is substandard pursuant to Section 17920.3 shall do all of the following: (1) Inspect the homeless shelter or portion thereof intended for human occupancy that may be substandard pursuant to Section 17920.3. (2) Identify whether the homeless shelter or any portion thereof intended for human occupancy is substandard pursuant to Section 17920.3, as applicable. The documentation shall be included in the inspection report described in subdivision (h). (3) As applicable, advise the owner or operator of a homeless shelter of each violation and of each action that is required to be taken to remedy the violation. The city or county shall schedule a reinspection to verify correction of the violations. (b) Notwithstanding any other provision of this part, and consistent with Section 17970, a city or county shall perform an annual inspection on every homeless shelter located in its jurisdiction to ensure that the homeless shelter is compliant with this part. A city or county conducting an inspection pursuant to this subdivision shall comply with this section, to the extent those provisions are applicable. (c) (1) If, upon inspection, the city or county determines that a homeless shelter is substandard pursuant to Section 17920.3, the city or county shall promptly, but not later than 10 business days after the city or county completes the inspection, issue a notice to correct the violation to the owner or operator of the homeless shelter. (2) In the event that the city or county determines that a violation constitutes an imminent threat to the health and safety of the occupants of the homeless shelter, the notice of violation shall be issued immediately and served on the owner or operator of the homeless shelter. (3) In the event that the city or county determines that deficiencies, violations, or conditions exist at a homeless shelter that are dangerous, hazardous, imminently detrimental to life or health, or otherwise render the homeless shelter unfit for human habitation, the city or county may issue an emergency order directing the owner or operator to take immediate measures to rectify those deficiencies, violations, or conditions. (d) An inspection conducted pursuant to this section may be announced or unannounced. (e) The city or county shall maintain all records on file of each homeless shelter inspection. These records shall be made available to the public for inspection. (f) A city or county shall perform an inspection conducted pursuant to subdivision (a) at least as promptly as that city or county conducts an inspection in response to a request for final inspection pursuant to Section 110 of Part 2 of Division 2 of Chapter 1 of the California Building Code (Part 2 of Title 24 of the California Code of Regulations). (g) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), a city or county is not required to conduct an inspection in response to either of the following: (1) A complaint that does not allege one or more substandard conditions. (2) A complaint submitted by a tenant, resident, or occupant who, within the past 180 days, submitted a complaint about the same property that the chief building inspector or their designee reasonably determined, after inspection, was frivolous or unfounded. (h) A city or county shall provide free, certified copies of an inspection report and citations issued pursuant to this section, if any, to the complaining occupant or their agent. If the inspection reveals a condition potentially affecting multiple occupants, including, but not limited to, conditions relating to the premises, common areas, or structural features, then the city or county shall provide free copies of the inspection report and citations issued to all potentially affected occupants or their agents. (i) A city or county shall not unreasonably refuse to communicate with an occupant or the agent of an occupant regarding any matter covered by this article. (j) A city or county shall conduct an inspection pursuant to this section based on the location of the homeless shelter, in accordance with the following: (1) A city shall conduct an inspection for shelters within the city’s jurisdiction. (2) A county shall conduct an inspection for shelters within the county’s jurisdiction. (3) A city with a population under 100,000 may partner with its county to conduct an inspection pursuant to this section.

Cal. Health and Safety Code - HSC § 17974.1.5. Section 17974.1.5.

(a) A homeless shelter shall prominently display at the shelter information about an occupant’s rights and the process for reporting a complaint alleging a homeless shelter is substandard pursuant to Section 17920.3, including the contact information for all of the following: (1) The owner or operator of the homeless shelter. (2) The city or county. (3) The department. (b) A homeless shelter shall provide in writing the notice specified in subdivision (a) to any new occupant during intake.

Cal. Health and Safety Code - HSC § 17974.2. Section 17974.2.

(a) The owner or operator of a homeless shelter shall be responsible for the correction of any violations for which a notice of violation has been given under this article. (b) An owner or operator of a homeless shelter shall correct each violation within 30 days of receipt of the citation. The city or county, in its sole discretion, may grant the owner or operator a 30-day extension to correct a violation.

Cal. Health and Safety Code - HSC § 17974.3. Section 17974.3.

(a) The requirements of this article shall not be construed to impose a mandatory duty pursuant to Section 815.6 of the Government Code, and shall not be construed to affect the availability of any immunity otherwise applicable to the city or county or its employees, including, but not limited to, Sections 818.2, 818.4, 818.6, 820.2, 821, 821.2, and 821.4 of the Government Code. (b) (1) An action to enforce the requirements of this article may be brought pursuant to Section 1085 of the Code of Civil Procedure. (2) A plaintiff who prevails in an action described in paragraph (1) shall be entitled to recover reasonable attorney’s fees and costs. (3) Notwithstanding any other law, including any provision of this part authorizing the department to enforce this part by means of administrative enforcement, the department may bring a civil action pursuant to this subdivision in order to enforce this part. (c) For purposes of Section 1085 of the Code of Civil Procedure, the requirements of this article shall be construed as acts that the law specially enjoins, as a duty resulting from an office, trust, or station.

Cal. Health and Safety Code - HSC § 17974.4. Section 17974.4.

(a) In addition to the penalties authorized under Chapter 6 (commencing with Section 17995), an owner or operator of a homeless shelter who fails to meet the timelines to correct a violation under this article, building standards published in the State Building Standards Code relating thereto, or any other rules or regulations adopted by the department pursuant to this part, may be liable for a civil penalty in an amount determined by the city or county for each violation or for each day of a continuing violation. (b) The city or county shall not award or distribute state funding to the owner or operator of a homeless shelter for purposes of operating the shelter, if the city or county determines that any of the following exist: (1) The owner or operator fails to correct a violation within the time period specified in Section 17974.2. (2) The owner or operator has failed to correct violations in a timely manner on multiple occasions. (3) The owner or operator has been cited for a violation that is an imminent threat to the health and safety of the occupants of the homeless shelter and the owner or operator fails to take sufficient action to correct the violation or prevent similar future violations.

Cal. Health and Safety Code - HSC § 17974.5. Section 17974.5.

(a) Each city and each county shall submit a report annually to the department and the state agency by April 1 of each year that includes all of the following information: (1) The number of complaints received by the city or county, pursuant to Section 17920.3, including if the city or county did not receive any complaints. (2) Any pending uncorrected violations determined by the city or county, pursuant to Section 17974.1. (3) Any determinations by the city or county that conditions exist or existed that make or made the homeless shelter dangerous, hazardous, imminently detrimental to life or health, or otherwise render the homeless shelter unfit for human habitation. (4) A list of any emergency orders issued pursuant to paragraph (3) of subdivision (c) of Section 17974.1. (5) A list of any owners or operators who received three or more violations within any six-month period. (6) Any corrected violations from the prior year. (b) The report submitted pursuant to subdivision (a) shall be submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code. (c) If a city or county applies for state funding to support the ongoing operations of a homeless shelter, the city or county shall disclose to the state agency that administers the state funding the status of any unresolved violations pursuant to this article and the names of the homeless shelter owner or operator. (d) The department or the state agency, may, pursuant to the reported information in subdivision (b), deem an owner or operator of a shelter ineligible for state funding for shelter operations. (e) The department shall withhold state funding from a city or county that fails to comply with the reporting requirements in this section or fails to take action to correct a violation of this article by a homeless shelter pursuant to Section 17974.4.

Cal. Health and Safety Code - HSC § 17974.6. Section 17974.6.

The Legislature finds and declares that this article addresses a matter of statewide concern rather than a municipal affair as that term is used in Section 5 of Article XI of the California Constitution. Therefore, this article applies to all cities, including charter cities.

Source: CA Legislative Counsel Bulk DataURL: https://downloads.leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/pubinfo_2025.zipFetched: 6/27/2026