SB 222 would bar California HOAs from blocking heat pumps
SB 222 would bar California HOAs from blocking heat pumps
2026-09-09 · California · Legislation · Pending — not yet law
A bill that would prevent California homeowners associations from restricting heat pumps and gas-to-electric appliance replacements has passed both houses and awaits the Governor's signature. SB 222 is not law. It was enrolled and presented to Governor Gavin Newsom on August 30, 2026, after the Senate concurred in the Assembly's amendments by a vote of 32–5 on August 25.1
Introduced by Senator Scott Wiener on January 27, 2025, SB 222 is a genuine two-year bill — one of the minority that survived a full session cycle to reach the Governor.
The association half of the bill
SB 222 adds a new section 4737 to the Civil Code. It would void any governing document provision that prevents an owner from replacing a fuel-gas-burning appliance with a code-compliant electric appliance, and any provision that effectively prohibits or restricts the installation or use of a residential heat pump water heater or heat pump HVAC system.2
The associated prohibitions track the pattern California has used for solar and EV charging: an association could not charge installation or use fees, require a specific contractor or product, claim rebates or commissions, or mandate removal of equipment already installed.
Two exceptions preserve a restriction: where the installation would violate federal, state or local law, and where the required permit is not approved. An association could still require the member to repair damage to the common area.
The permitting half
The bill also adds a new chapter to the Government Code, beginning at section 51297.50, aimed at local agencies rather than associations. Its provisions are specific and dated:
Permit fees would be capped at $150 for a heat pump water heater and $200 for a heat pump HVAC system, with one nondiscretionary permit per installation. Cities and counties would have to adopt asynchronous inspections by July 1, 2027 and online automated permitting with real-time issuance by July 1, 2028, subject to population-based exceptions for smaller jurisdictions. Window air-conditioner and heat-pump units meeting stated voltage and installation criteria would be exempt from permits entirely. New residential construction is excluded from the chapter.
What it would change for boards and managers
The permit exception narrows sharply. Under section 4737 an association's restriction survives where the required permit is not approved — but the same bill exempts qualifying window units from needing a permit at all, and caps and accelerates permitting for everything else. The exception an association would most likely reach for is the one the bill is engineered to make rare.
Exterior equipment standards are the pressure point. A heat pump HVAC system has an outdoor condenser unit. Governing documents that regulate equipment visible from the street, or that assign no location for mechanical equipment on a zero-lot-line plan, would face installations they cannot refuse on aesthetic grounds. The bill does not create a placement right, and it does not say where the unit goes — which is precisely the gap boards will have to work in.
Condominiums face a question planned developments do not. Where the proposed location is common area or exclusive use common area rather than a separate interest, the association's maintenance and alteration authority is engaged independently of section 4737. The bill voids restrictions on installation; it does not by its terms resolve who owns, maintains or insures equipment attached to a building component the association is responsible for.
Water heater replacement is the volume item. Heat pump water heaters are larger than the gas units they replace and have clearance and condensate-drainage requirements. In a condominium with interior utility closets sized for a gas heater, the replacement question becomes a building question, and the association's architectural review role shifts from whether to how.
The overlap with AB 1684
AB 1684, also on the Governor's desk, would add section 4738 covering any code-compliant cooling system, with a $2,000 civil penalty and one-way attorney's fees. SB 222 as presented does not carry that penalty structure.
A heat pump HVAC system provides cooling, so a single installation could fall within both sections if both bills are signed. The two sections do not have identical exceptions, and they do not have identical remedies. An association evaluating a heat pump application would need to identify which section it is operating under before deciding what it may require — and where both apply, the more protective provision governs the owner's rights.
What to watch next
The Governor has until September 30, 2026 to act on bills passed before September 1.3 A veto would end SB 222 outright: the 2025–2026 session has closed, so nothing carries over into 2027.
If it is signed, the association provisions would take effect January 1, 2027 under the ordinary rule, while the local-agency deadlines run to July 1, 2027 and July 1, 2028. That staggering matters: associations would be subject to the restriction on covenants a full six months before cities are required to have asynchronous inspection in place.
Boards revising governing documents in the interim should note that section 4737 would operate on the documents whether or not they are amended. Amendment is a clarity exercise, not a compliance one.
Related California HOA Topics
- SB 222, California Legislature — bill status and complete history (enrolled and presented to the Governor August 30, 2026) ↩
- SB 222, California Legislature — bill text and Legislative Counsel's Digest (adding Civil Code § 4737 and Government Code § 51297.50 et seq.) ↩
- 2026 Tentative Legislative Calendar, California State Senate (September 30 last day for the Governor to act) ↩
- CAI-CLAC, Legislative Session Hot Bills — California Legislative Action Committee bill positions ↩
Stay on top of California HOA law
Every week: new California legislation, court rulings, and regulatory developments affecting condos, planned communities, and property managers. Free.
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.