California's SB 26 Continues To Move Through The California Legislature

California Senate Bill 26 – the clean-up legislation that would permit manufacturers to opt-in to the new streamlined procedures and incentivizes the seller of a vehicle that is the subject of a lemon law claim under AB 1755 to disclose the reasons for such claim to the potential buyer – continues to move through the California legislature. 

In late January, the bill was assigned to two Senate committees: the Judiciary Committee and the Business, Professions, and Economic Development (BPED) Committee. It passed out of the Judiciary Committee on February 11 and is currently being reviewed by the BPED Committee. 

To address the concerns of the Chair of the BPED Committee, a compromise was reached that will make two changes to SB 26. The compromise revisions will:

• Push back the effective date of the pre-dispute notice requirement from April 1, 2025 to July 1, 2025.
• Add language to SB 26 that would allow the legislature, in 2029, to review how AB 1755 is working and for the possibility of the sunset of AB 1755 in 2029, only if the legislature passed legislation to do so.

With these changes, the Chair of the BPED Committee has set a hearing date for SB 26 on Monday, March 3, 2025. The expectation is that it will pass out of committee with the above revisions. 

This bill is NOT yet law and still has to pass through all of the necessary committees and both houses of the California legislature. The state goal from the Governor’s office is for the Governor to be able to sign it before April to allow for the opt-ins and to avoid confusion about the pre-dispute notice effective date. 

Currently, AB 1755 applies to all RV manufacturers. As of January 1, 2025, all impacted companies should be ready to comply with the requirements of AB 1755. 

The RV Industry Association will continue to monitor the status of SB 26. Please continue to read the News & Insights for updates.