San Francisco

Concrete Subject Buildings
 

• Buildings where the vertical elements that support gravity load (columns, walls) are constructed of concrete and/or vertical elements of concrete construction are part of the lateral-force-resisting system, and
• Permitted for construction prior to July 1, 1999 or designed based on a code prior to that date
• Greater than one story of concrete construction.

Detailed exemptions are provided in SFEBC Chapter 5G, with a summary of each exemption provided below.

Exemptions - If one or more of the following apply, the Concrete Building is not a Subject Building:

• The building is one story.
• The building is no more than two stories with a structural reinforced concrete diaphragm at the second floor and/or roof and does not have concrete columns or wall piers.
• The building is steel framed with steel columns connected to steel beams that support all floor and roof gravity loads
• The building’s concrete vertical elements extend less than four feet above adjacent grade (i.e., concrete vertical elements are limited to below-grade elements, like basements and foundations)
• The building was seismically retrofitted to meet one of the listed standards (see exemption in Ordinance), including bringing the building into compliance with the the lateral force resistance requirements of the San Francisco Building Code in effect on or after 7/1/1999.
• The building is a one- or two-family dwelling.
• The building consists of light-frame construction over a one-story concrete podium.

Timeline

The City issued official notices to potentially subject property owners in December 2025. If you received a notice about the Concrete Building Screening Program, you are required to submit an online screening form. The deadline for compliance with the Screening Program is June 9, 2027.

Screening Process

As a part of the screening process, owners will be required to answer initial questions related to the potentially subject building through an online screening form. Some of the pertinent information for building owners to gather is listed below; more information can be found on the San Francisco Department of Building Inspection (SFDBI) Concrete Building Screening Program website. If the initial screening questions and review by SFDBI find that the building is exempt, the building will be in compliance with the Ordinance and no further action is required.

• Date of original permit and construction
• Number of stories above grade (maximum and minimum, if it varies)
• Number of residential units and occupancy classification
• Total footprint area (if one-story RWFD building)
• Information regarding any prior permitted and completed seismic retrofits such as the applicable code used for retrofit

If the initial screening questions find that the building is possibly subject to the Program, additional information will be required that can only be provided by an architect, civil engineer, or structural engineer licensed in the state of California.

Once the screening form is completed and reviewed by SFDBI, a notice of compliance will be issued.

No seismic retrofit is required of subject concrete buildings at this time; however, should property owners of subject buildings wish to undergo a voluntary retrofit, the ordinance has identified SFEBC Appendix Chapter A6 as the applicable minimum standards for concrete buildings. It is understood that a completed voluntary seismic retrofit pursuant to these identified standards would exempt a building from any potential future mandatory local seismic retrofit ordinances for 20 years from the effective date of the ordinance.