On March 1, 2017, Assembly Bill No. 1732 went into effect, requiring all single-user bathrooms in any business, public place, or government agency to be identified as all-gender (Cal. Health & Safety Code § 118600). California Governor Jerry Brown signed the bill into law on September 29, 2016.

Under the law, a single-user toilet is defined as a toilet facility with no more than one toilet and one urinal, that contains a lock controlled by the user. The signage on the outside of the toilet facility must comply with Title 24 of the California Code of Regulations (Cal. Code Regs., Tit. 24, Part 2).

The specific requirements for single-use toilet signage in Title 24 are found in Chapter 11B-703.7.2.6.3 of the California Building Code, which describes a symbol containing a circle with a triangle superimposed over it. The circle must be 12 inches in diameter and the triangle must contrast with the circle.

Owners and operators of buildings containing single-user toilet facilities must ensure that any gender-specific signage on such facilities be immediately changed to the all-gender symbol described in Chapter 11B. Landlords and tenants should also review their leases to confirm that any applicable section complies with the new regulations.

For more information on commercial real estate in California, see Practice Note, Key Considerations in Buying and Selling Commercial Real Estate (CA).