Los Angeles Municipal Code Div. 1 General Administrative Provisions

Section 93.0101 Title.

93.0102 Purpose. 93.0103 Scope. 93.0104 Prohibited Acts. 93.0105 Interpretation. 93.0106 Other Limitations. 93.0107 Distracting, Confusing or Nuisance Lighting Viewed from Public Streets, Highways or Other Public Thoroughfares Used by Vehicular Traffic. 93.0108 Exempted from Code. 93.0109 Existing Construction. 93.0110 Relocated Buildings. 93.0111 Change of Occupancies. 93.0112 Effective Date. 93.0113 Referred Documents – Copies. 93.0114 Right of Entry. 93.0115 Code Arrangement. 93.0116 Fire Damaged Wiring System. 93.0117 Outdoor Lighting Affecting Residential Property.

(Amended by Ord. No. 187,719, Eff. 1/23/23.)

This article shall be known as the "Los Angeles Electrical Code" a portion of the "Los Angeles Municipal Code". Wherever the word "Code" is used in this article, it shall mean the "Los Angeles Electrical Code" and whenever "LAMC" is used, it shall refer to the "Los Angeles Municipal Code". References to the "CEC" and the "CBSC" shall mean the 2022 "California Electrical Code" and the 2022 "California Building Standards Codes" respectively. Whenever the word "City" is used, it shall mean the "City of Los Angeles". Whenever the word "Department" is used, it shall mean the "Department of Building and Safety".

(a) The purpose of this Code is to reduce the personnel hazard and the fire hazard from electrical causes. To accomplish this, the requirements set forth herein are intended to provide a minimum standard for electrical installations in the City of Los Angeles.

(b) Whenever compliance with the provisions of this Code fail to reduce the demonstrable hazards due to electrical causes to an acceptable level and the hazard is such that the time required to effect a change through normal processes would not be in the common interest, the Superintendent of the Department may require additional safeguards to meet the intent and purpose of this Code.

(Amended by Ord. No. 172,593, Eff. 6/28/99, Oper. 7/1/99.)

The provisions of this Code shall apply to all electrical systems or equipment installed, used, maintained, rented, leased, or offered for sale or distributed for use in the City of Los Angeles, except those electrical systems and equipment exempted from the provisions of this Code.

It is the intent of this Code to place jurisdiction of electrical wiring on the supply side of service points with the electric utility or serving agency.

(Amended by Ord. No. 185,198, Eff. 11/22/17.)

No person shall install, operate or maintain electrical systems or equipment which do not comply with all of the applicable provisions of this Code.

(a) If two or more pertinent limitations are not identical, those limitations which provide the greater safety to life and limb, property or public welfare shall prevail.

(b) The Superintendent of Building is empowered to make all interpretations concerning the provisions of this Code.

(Amended by Ord. No. 154,234, Eff. 9/1/80.)

(a) The permissive provisions of this Code shall not be presumed to waive any limitation imposed by the statutes or ordinances of the City or other governmental agencies.

(b) The provisions of this Code which allow exposed live parts or open wiring systems or which permit access to, or operation or maintenance of such systems by qualified persons shall be subject to the further requirement that special permission must be obtained in each instance.

(c) No person shall cause to be used or energize any electrical systems or equipment installed in, or connected to, any building, vehicle or movable structure which does not conform to, or is in violation of the LAMC, except where the Department determines that a limited or temporary occupancy may be permitted. (Amended by Ord. No. 172,593, Eff. 6/28/99, Oper. 7/1/99.)

(Added by Ord. No. 161,316, Eff. 7/7/86.)

(a) No person shall construct, establish, create, or maintain any stationary exterior electric lighting or illumination system or any interior system which is visible from a public street, highway or other public thoroughfare used for vehicular traffic, that contains or utilizes:

1. An exposed incandescent lamp with a rated wattage in excess of 40 watts.

2. An exposed incandescent lamp with an internal metallic reflector.

3. An exposed incandescent lamp with an external reflector.

4. A revolving beacon light.

5. A continuous or sequential flashing operation in which more than one- third of the lights are turned on or off at one time.

6. An illuminating device or devices which produce illumination in excess of what is permitted in Section 21466.5 of the State of California Vehicle Code.

(b) The provisions of this section shall not apply to: (Amended by Ord. No. 171,858, Eff. 1/23/98.)

1. Lighting systems owned or controlled by any public agency for the purpose of directing or controlling navigation, traffic, or for highway or street illumination.

2. Aircraft warning lights.

3. Systems which only display the time of day and/or the atmospheric temperature or programmable electronic messages.

4. Temporary lighting used for repair or construction as required by governmental agencies.

   5. Lights that are provided in compliance with Sections 12.21 A.5.(k), 91.6305.2 and 91.8607 of the LAMC. (Amended by Ord. No. 176,775, Eff. 8/1/05, Oper. 8/1/05.)

(Amended by Ord. No. 154,234, Eff. 9/8/80.)

(a) Railways. The provisions of this Code shall not apply to the following electric wiring installed, owned, maintained or controlled by an interstate, interurban or street railway;

1. Electric wiring in any generating plant, central station or substation used for generating, transforming or transmitting electrical power used exclusively for operating trains, engines, car or trolley coaches; or

2. Overhead and underground distribution systems used exclusively for the operation of equipment listed in Subdivision 1 of this subsection; or (Amended by Ord. No. 185,587, Eff. 7/16/18.)

3. Electric wiring used exclusively for signaling and communication purposes.

(b) Serving Agency. The provisions of this Code shall not apply to the following electric wiring installed, owned, and controlled by an electrical utility or serving agency which supplies electricity to 100 or more separate premises:

1. Any generating plant, receiving station, switching station, distributing station, or industrial or commercial station under the control of such utility or serving agency. However, nothing contained in this

subdivision shall be construed to exempt any electric wiring which is used for general lighting or general power purposes such as heating, cooling, ventilating, elevators, or pumping equipment; nor to exempt any feeder, service, switchboard, branch circuit panelboard or standby power generator used in whole or in part for general building operation purposes; and (Amended by Ord. No. 176,775, Eff. 8/1/05, Oper. 8/1/05.)

2. Any electrical wiring for its supply lines or mains; and

3. Service drops to the service point which are attached to a structure or the outermost exterior wall of a building, or a roof immediately adjacent to an exterior wall of a building; and (Amended by Ord. No.

176,775, Eff. 8/1/05, Oper. 8/1/05.)

4. Service laterals and their raceways where installed under not less than two inches of concrete beneath a building or other structure and not located in a hazardous location; and (Amended by Ord. No. 176,775,

Eff. 8/1/05, Oper. 8/1/05.)

5. All service wiring located within a customer owned station and the high voltage conductors to such station which have all enclosing conduit encased in three inches of concrete; and

6. Service conductors and raceways encased in not less than two inches of concrete, or raceways that are not concealed, which extend from an interior station to service equipment located adjacent to the station;

and

7. Meters of metering equipment.

(c) Communication Public Utility Systems. (Amended by Ord. No. 161,316, Eff. 7/7/86.)

1. The provisions of this Code shall not apply to installation of communications equipment under the exclusive control of communications public utilities, located outdoors or in building spaces used exclusively for communications purposes in the exercise of its communications utility functions, except where such communications equipment is located in a hazardous location or penetrates any fire-resistive wall or floor system of cable systems that are located in a plenum area or access floor area. (Amended by Ord. No. 162,834, Eff. 10/26/87.)

   2. Nothing contained in Subdivision 1 of this subsection shall be construed to exempt any electric wiring which is used for external, internal, alternating or direct current power supplies and/or rectifiers

   exceeding 500va used to supply power to communication public utility equipment or used for general lighting or general power purposes such as heating, cooling, ventilating, elevators, or pumping equipment, nor to exempt any feeder, service, switchboard, branch circuit panelboard or standby power generator used in whole or in part for general building operation purposes, except as to communication public utility equipment for the transmission of audio, data, video and other services housed within a central office exclusively operated by a communications public utility where such equipment is not located in hazardous locations. (Amended by Ord. No. 176,775, Eff. 8/1/05, Oper. 8/1/05.)

(d) Vehicles. The provisions of this Code shall not apply to any vehicle which complies with the California State Vehicle Act. This exemption does not include transportable generating, transforming and related control equipment which is mounted on vehicles and used for the supply of wiring regulated by this Code.

(e) Municipal Systems. The provisions of this Code shall not apply to a Municipal System for street lighting, traffic signal or police and fire alarm where installed outside of buildings on public property.

(f) Mobile Homes, Travel Trailers, Camp Cars and Mobile Home Parks. This Code shall not apply to mobile homes, travel trailers, camp cars and mobile home parks, including permanent buildings, accessory buildings and wiring outside of buildings within such parks.

(g) Hazardous Locations Not Exempted. (Amended by Ord. No. 172,593, Eff. 6/28/99, Oper. 7/1/99.) The foregoing exceptions from the requirements of this Code shall not apply to any electric wiring located in an area classified as a hazardous location by Article 500 of the CEC.

(Amended by Ord. No. 185,587, Eff. 7/16/18.)

Except as specified in LAMC Section 93.0111 and LAMC Section 93.0311(f), nothing contained in this Code shall be construed to curtail the uses of, nor to require any person to reinstall, reconstruct, alter, change or remove any electric wiring or equipment which had complied with the laws and regulations in effect at the time of installation.

(Added by Ord. No. 154,234, Eff. 9/8/80.)

(a) In any building relocated from one place to another within the City and any one- family, two-family or multi-family dwelling moved into the City, may retain the existing electrical wiring provided any such residential building does not become or continue to be a substandard residential building or residential building subject to repair, as those terms are defined in the Municipal Code. However, any electrical wiring which is not in good and safe condition or not working properly shall be corrected. Existing electrical wiring in any building moved into the City, other than one-family, two-family or multi-family dwellings, shall comply with all the requirements of this Code.

(b) New electrical wiring which is installed in any building moved into or within the City shall comply with all the requirements of this Code.

(Amended by Ord. No. 184,692, Eff. 12/30/16.)

(a) Any building or portion of a building in which there has been a change of occupancy or location, after July 1, 1986, to one of the following, shall be wired in accordance with this Code. (See LAMC Section 91.8203.)

1. Locations defined by CEC Division 500 or this Code as hazardous locations.

2. Occupancies defined in Article 1, Chapter IX of the LAMC, and which are required by Article 7, Chapter V, of the LAMC, or where the owner or designer has installed a fire alarm system.

3. Occupancies where the new occupant load exceeds the original or previous value in the building. The occupant load is determined according to the provisions of this the Los Angeles Building Code.

4. Occupancies where the proposed new load density exceeds that of the original or previously used space. Load density is determined based on the load per square foot of area under consideration for the

permit.

5. Change in use or occupancy requiring a more restrictive wiring method.

Electric wiring installed under a permit issued before the effective date of this Code may be installed in accordance with the laws in effect when the permit was issued; and all work begun before the expiration of the permit may be done in accordance with such laws. (Added by Ord. No. 154,234, Eff. 9/8/80.)

Three copies of every law, ordinance, regulation, and specification, or portion thereof which is specifically referred to, or which is mentioned by title and serial designation, or by date of publication, approval or adoption in this Code, shall be kept on file and available for public inspection in the office of the Superintendent of Building. (Added by Ord. No. 154,234, Eff. 9/8/80.)

Right of entry shall be governed by the provisions of Section 98.0105 of the Los Angeles Municipal Code. (Added by Ord. No. 154,234, Eff. 9/8/80.)

(Amended by Ord. No. 185,587, Eff. 7/16/18.)

CEC Chapters 1, 2, 3 and 4 and the tables of Chapter 9 apply as general rules. CEC Chapters 5, 6 and 7 apply to special occupancies, special equipment or their special conditions and supplement or modify the general rules. CEC Chapter 8 covers communication systems and is not subject to the requirements of CEC Chapters 1 through 7 except where specifically referenced in CEC Chapter 8.

(Added by Ord. No. 184,692, Eff. 12/30/16.)

(a) When the Department determines by field verification that the extent of damage to the wiring system installation in a building, structure or area:

(i) Exceeds 50%, the entire electrical wiring system has to be reinstalled in compliance with the current code;

(ii) Is 50% or less, only the damaged wiring system has to be reinstalled in compliance with the current code.

(Amended by Ord. No. 184,692, Eff. 12/30/16.)

(a) The provisions of this section shall apply to any exterior luminaire, multi-head luminaire, lamp holder or sign light source.

(b) No person shall construct, establish, create, or maintain any stationary exterior light source that may cause the following locations to be either illuminated by more than two footcandles (21.5 lx) of lighting intensity or receive direct glare from the light source. Direct glare, as used in this subsection is a glare resulting from high luminances or insufficiently shielded light sources that is in the field of view.

1. Any exterior glazed window or sliding glass door on any other property containing a residential unit or units.

2. Any elevated habitable porch, deck or balcony on any other property containing a residential unit or units.

3. Any ground surface intended for use but not limited to recreation, barbecue, or lawn areas on any other property containing a residential unit or units.

EXCEPTIONS: Subsection (b) shall not apply to:

1. Any frosted light source emitting 800 lumens or less.

2. Any other light source emitting more than 800 lumens where the light source is not visible to persons on other residential property.

3. Any new or existing tennis or paddle tennis court exterior light source which conforms to the following:

A. Tennis courts shall be lighted by a maximum of eight full cut-off, horizontally mounted 1,000 watts or less luminaires, shielded in such a manner that the light source cannot be viewable from abutting residential properties. A luminaire shall not have a light intensity of more than 7,500 cd in rural areas, and 25,000 cd in the urban areas as these areas are defined by the 2010 US Census. The luminaire shall be mounted at a height of 20 feet (6096 mm) or less above the court surface and produce not more than 50 footcandles (538 lx) of lighting intensity on the court surface.

B. Paddle Tennis Courts shall be subject to all the provisions of Subparagraph 3.A., except that the number of luminaires shall be limited to four.

C. Tennis or Paddle Tennis Court lights shall not be turned on or left on between the hours of 10:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m., Monday through Friday, and between the hours of 10:00 p.m. and 8:00 a.m., Saturday and Sunday.

D. The allowed light source intensity at locations indicated in Subsection (b) shall not exceed three footcandles (32.3 lx).

4. Decorative lights with individual light sources emitting 300 lumens or less and temporarily installed between November 25 and January 15 of the next year.

5. Emergency lights or temporary lighting sources used for repair or construction as required by governmental agencies.

6. Lighting sources owned or controlled by any public agency for the purpose of directing or controlling navigation, traffic or for highway or street illumination.

   7. Aircraft warning lights.

   8. Any other light source which is a minimum of 2,000 feet (609.6 m) in distance from any other property with a residential unit or units.

   9. Lights that are provided in compliance with LAMC Sections 12.21 A.5.(k), Subsection 91.6305.2 and Section 91.8607.

(c) The owner of property with any existing light source shall bring such light source into compliance with this section upon receipt of written notice from the Department.