Market weather: 1-watch. California smoke-damage bills are enrolled and waiting on the Governor. Wisconsin’s post-loss assignment rules take effect Dec. 1. Connecticut mold work-practice rules take effect Oct. 1.
This list is limited to items that change licensing, who gets paid, required documentation, work practices, or reimbursement clocks on commercial and facility restoration jobs.
On the board
1. California AB 1642 + AB 1795 — smoke testing and claims rules
Status: Enrolled; awaiting Governor action (deadline late September). AB 1795 is written as contingent on AB 1642.
Why a PM / estimator cares: If signed, California would set the first statewide testing-and-remediation framework for wildfire smoke, ash, soot, char, and related contaminants in standing structures. Insurer inspection clocks, testing cost, ALE duration, and the insured’s right to choose the restoration vendor all move. Scope language and clearance documentation change first. The bill text is still residential-heavy; commercial shops working standing buildings in a wildfire impact zone should treat it as the model other states will copy.
Primary: California Legislature / enrolled text · AB 1642 (Harabedian) · AB 1795 (Gipson).
2. Wisconsin Act 230 (SB 531) — post-loss AOB limits
Status: Signed April 8, 2026. Effective December 1, 2026.
Why a PM / estimator cares: On covered catastrophe claims to 1–2 family residential property, a post-loss assignment may name the contractor only as a co-payee, must itemize work/materials/fees, must carry statutory notices, and gives a five-business-day cancel right (with an emergency exception). Direction-to-pay is not the same as an assignment. Shops that still use AOB packets in Wisconsin need new forms before Dec. 1.
Primary: 2025 Wisconsin Act 230 · Wis. Stat. § 632.11.
3. EPA — Asbestos Part 2 data call (legacy uses)
Status: Risk evaluation already final. EPA is collecting additional exposure data before the risk-management rule. Confirm the live docket date before treating a comment window as closed.
Why a PM / estimator cares: The next TSCA rule will land on renovation, demolition, and repair that disturbs legacy ACM. Data now will shape work practices, sampling, and who counts as an exposed worker — including self-employed crews.
Primary: EPA Asbestos Part 2 · docket EPA-HQ-OPPT-2025-0036.
4. Connecticut — mold remediation standards (effective Oct. 1, 2026)
Status: Mold work-practice and certification rule signed and effective October 1, 2026 (IICRC, NORMI, or commissioner-approved certification; ANSI/IICRC S520 or an approved successor). Separate 2026 bills that would have licensed fire and catastrophic restoration businesses and registered commercial mold remediators did not finish the session.
Why a PM / estimator cares: Commercial mold scopes in Connecticut now have a statutory standard and a credential floor. Home-improvement certificates can be blocked if someone holds themselves out as a mold remediator without the required certification.
Primary: Connecticut General Assembly / Department of Consumer Protection implementing statute for the signed mold-remediation act.
5. Federal — CDBG-DR authorized for three years
Status: Public Law 119-101 (21st Century ROAD to Housing Act), July 11, 2026. Section 504 authorizes HUD CDBG-DR for three years and stands up an Office of Disaster Management and Resiliency.
Why a PM / estimator cares: Long-term disaster rebuild money is no longer only an ad-hoc supplemental. Grantee rules, income priority, resilience scopes, and duplication-of-benefits clocks will get more regular. Watch HUD implementing notices before bidding CDBG-DR facility work as if last year’s waiver packet still applies.
Primary: H.R. 6644 / P.L. 119-101.
Watch list — not a staffing change this week
- Minnesota HF 4226 (emergency restoration professional and company licensure) — introduced March 2026, still in committee, with proposed 2028 effective dates.
- SBA Disaster Loan permitting rule — already effective Jan. 29, 2026. It can speed starts on financed repairs; building codes, inspections, and certificates of occupancy still apply.