A California home on a hot day shouldn’t be deadly. One bill can help | Opinion

As the toll of extreme heat continues to rise in California, so too does the urgency for state and local leaders to take every opportunity to provide long-lasting protections for vulnerable people.

Senate Bill 655 authored by Henry Stern, D-Los Angeles, would save lives by establishing the groundwork to ensure that all Californians live in a home that can maintain a safe indoor temperature. California already has laws in place for homes to maintain a minimum indoor temperature. Why not have laws in place to ensure homes maintain a maximum indoor temperature too?

This is long overdue. SB 655 takes that important first step by making it official state policy for all residences to have a maximum safe temperature, and for state agencies to take future actions consistent with this policy. This bill has passed the Legislature and awaits action by Gov. Gavin Newsom.

In the San Joaquin Valley, triple digit heat creeps into our forecast earlier and earlier each year. We experience long stretches of 100-degree days throughout the summer when the heat feels inescapable.

Our poor air quality only exacerbates the issue. Extreme heat worsens air quality, which in turn aggravates the risk of heart, respiratory and other health issues — especially if we open windows, letting dirty air inside to try to stay cool.

Without increasing people’s access to measures that would adequately cool their homes, excessive heat will kill more people. In fact, studies estimate that excessive heat could kill more than 11,000 Californians annually by 2050.

Living in a mobile home is especially challenging, especially because mine is more than 40 years old and seems to just bake in the sun, making the heat so much worse. We bought two window air conditioners, which were really expensive for us, and cost-prohibitive for many of our neighbors who continue to suffer without any indoor cooling.

I have four children, and we don’t have a space that is comfortable for us all. I give them showers at least three times a day just to keep them cool. Sometimes we go outside and fill a small pool with water, but it’s not enough on extreme heat days because the water warms quickly. I buy them ice cream and give them water, but that’s also a lot of money for us.

Summer should be a carefree time for children, but I worry about mine. They try to stay hydrated and keep cool, but it’s never enough. Too often, I hear “Mommy, I feel dehydrated” or “Mommy, I feel tired.” Children should feel safe in their home, not exhausted or uncomfortable to be there.

At the local level, I advocate for programs and policies that address housing issues many of us face in our region. After learning about SB 655, I was eager to make sure state leaders understand what something like that would mean for my family and millions of others like ours across the state.

Several hundred people die from extreme heat events each year in California, and several thousand are hospitalized. The effects of extreme heat are disproportionately borne by low-income communities, older adults and outdoor workers who often experience extreme temperatures in their homes as well.

We need state leaders and agencies to work together to strive toward a reality where all Californians can be safe from extreme heat and related illness and death in their own homes. SB 655 would push them toward this goal and unify efforts to ensure Californians refuge from extreme heat in their homes and mitigate declines of health, well-being, and quality of life for millions of people.

SB 655 is a common-sense solution to a deadly problem that impacts more than 3.5 million households in California every year. For me, access to reliable and affordable indoor cooling would give me peace of mind, knowing my children and I are in a safe place with no need to leave our home.

Galvia Juarez lives in Fresno in a mobile home with her family. She is an advocate at the state and local level for safe, affordable housing in her community.