This law section defines key terms related to earthquake safety measures. It specifies that 'earthquake hazard mitigation technologies' involve methods like seismic isolation and damping systems to protect buildings from earthquake damage, excluding those covered by older codes. 'Life cycle cost' refers to all costs associated with a building's life, like construction, insurance, maintenance, and potential earthquake-related disruptions. 'Peer review' involves an assessment by experts from various fields who are independent of the project, to ensure designs meet safety standards. Finally, a 'public agency' includes a range of governmental bodies, from state to local entities.

This law requires the Seismic Safety Commission, along with the State Architect, to create and propose a policy about acceptable earthquake risk levels for state-owned buildings to the Legislature. This policy was due by January 1, 1991.

Additionally, the State Architect must work with state agencies to identify which activities within state buildings are crucial for operations after an earthquake.

This law requires the State Architect to create regulations by January 1, 1992, that detail how to use earthquake hazard mitigation technologies in buildings. These regulations must include design and performance standards aimed at minimizing earthquake damage or keeping buildings operational after an earthquake. Additionally, the regulations should outline how to estimate the life cycle costs of buildings using these technologies and set guidelines for deciding if these technologies are better than traditional construction methods, based on specific project needs and costs.

An advisory board will help the State Architect develop these regulations.

The State Architect in California is responsible for collaborating with various stakeholders, such as state agencies and professional organizations, to enhance earthquake safety standards. The State Architect will also promote educational efforts to help design professionals and building officials understand new earthquake hazard technologies through forums and seminars.

Additionally, there is an emphasis on increasing funding and resources for earthquake research, like shake tables, from both public and private sectors.

Finally, the State Architect must partner with engineering organizations to propose regulations to the International Conference of Building Officials to be considered for inclusion in future building codes, with a deadline set for August 1, 1993.

This law section outlines how the State Architect will choose certain buildings to test and demonstrate earthquake hazard reduction technologies. These projects, intended to serve as examples, will involve three state-owned buildings: one newly built and two existing structures. The selected buildings can be proposed by various state agencies but need the approval of the State Architect.

Additionally, these demonstration projects should be equipped with monitoring devices to track structural movements during earthquakes, overseen by the Strong Motion Instrumentation Program. The intent is for the costs of such monitoring to be covered by the funds allocated for constructing the building.

The State Architect is responsible for creating and sharing materials that explain how buildings are expected to perform during earthquakes, based on different building codes and hazard mitigation technologies. This information is made available to government agencies and the public to help them understand earthquake risks.

Additionally, the State Architect provides information to insurance companies, building owners, and the public about how using earthquake hazard mitigation can significantly reduce damage, lower insurance costs, and minimize disruption during earthquakes.

This law encourages the University of California, California State University, the Department of Corrections, and public agencies to create and use policies that consider the lowest reasonable costs over the life of a project, following a similar method as outlined in a different section.

However, the University of California's Board of Regents is not required to comply with this unless they choose to do so by passing a resolution.

This law ensures that the authority of a design professional, who signs off on plans and specifications for a project, is not reduced or changed by any part of this chapter or its related regulations.

This law encourages both private and public building owners and developers to use specific guidelines for building design and reconstruction, especially in relation to earthquake safety. Local governments have set certain standards that they suggest incorporating into building projects.

The State Architect is responsible for evaluating how well buildings meet earthquake safety standards when asked by relevant parties. An advisory committee is available to provide expert peer reviews of these evaluations.

Building owners must pay fees for these evaluations, which cover the costs of the review process. Importantly, local agencies cannot mandate compliance with these guidelines as a condition for design approval.

This law states that if a building project involving earthquake safety measures needs approval from more than one public agency, these agencies should try to hold their required hearings together. The goal is to save time by consolidating the hearings. However, this joint hearing approach only affects the process and does not change the individual responsibilities each agency has toward the project.

This law requires the State Architect to regularly update the Seismic Safety Commission about how this specific chapter is being put into practice and managed.