Is Your Permit Office Ready for Remote Inspections? A Compliance Checklist

California’s AB 1738 is now law, and it gives building departments a firm deadline. By July 1, 2027, every city and county must offer homeowners and contractors the option to request a remote inspection for a defined list of residential projects in single-family and two-family homes. The remote option must cost no more and cause no more delay than an in-person visit.

That is a significant shift. According to the Assembly committee analysis of the bill, only about 19 of California’s 540 jurisdictions allow any remote inspections today. For most permit offices, this is a new program rather than an upgrade.

The good news is that you have months, not weeks, to prepare. Remote video inspection is a proven method that other departments already use to cut travel time and clear backlogs, and the requirements break down into a manageable checklist.

Use this guide as a self-assessment. If you can check off every item, your office is ready. If not, you will know exactly where to focus. The details below follow the committee analysis of the bill, so confirm final language with your city attorney or county counsel before adopting policy.

Why permit offices should start now

Waiting until spring 2027 is risky for four reasons.

First, the mandate covers a long list of permit types, from water heaters and reroofs to solar and small ADUs. Demand may arrive all at once when the law takes effect.

Second, the law requires parity. If your remote queue is slower or costlier than your in-person queue, you are out of compliance.

Third, departments must report on their programs to the state Department of Housing and Community Development, starting with the report due April 1, 2028. That report includes remote and in-person inspection counts, failure rates and audits.

Fourth, procurement, training and policy updates take time, especially for government customers working through budget cycles and IT review.

Starting now gives your team time to pilot, learn and adjust before the deadline.

Step 1: Map your eligible permit types

Start with the scope of the law. The bill requires a remote option for water heaters, HVAC systems, reroofs, minor electrical and plumbing work, solar and energy storage systems, smoke and carbon monoxide detectors, ADUs and JADUs under 800 square feet, and home hardening and defensible space work.

A second group stays at the inspector’s discretion. It includes drywall, siding, insulation, window replacements, light foundations, fireplace inserts, patios and decks, temporary power poles, demolition, gas line removal, and additions or sheds under 800 square feet.

• List every permit type your office issues for single-family and two-family homes and mark each as must-offer, discretionary or not covered.
• Confirm the exclusions, such as foundation and framing inspections for ADUs.
• Pull last year’s inspection volume for each must-offer permit type so you can size your remote queue.
• Identify your highest-volume inspection types, since these will deliver the quickest savings.

Step 2: Write your remote inspection policy

A clear written policy protects your inspectors and gives contractors predictable rules. The bill leaves several decisions to the local inspector, including whether to use live video or recorded photos and video, so your policy should explain how those choices get made.

• Define when an inspector uses live video and when they use recorded media.
• Set criteria for ending a remote inspection and requiring an in-person visit.
• Decide how failed remote inspections are handled. The bill allows the inspector to conduct later inspections on the same permit remotely or in person.
• Confirm that fees and scheduling match in-person inspections.
• Publish instructions on your website so applicants know how to request a remote inspection.
• Review liability language with counsel. The bill applies the same liabilities and immunities to remote inspections as to in-person ones.

Step 3: Choose technology that works in the field

Technology is where most remote programs succeed or fail. An inspector cannot approve what they cannot see, and an applicant cannot fix a connection problem on a roof. Look for these capabilities:

• App-free access. Blitzz’s browser-based video calling lets the person on site join from any smartphone through a secure link, with no download or account.
• Low-connectivity support. Offline mode lets participants capture images and data without a signal and upload automatically when the connection returns. Attics, crawl spaces and rural properties are exactly where this matters.
• Recording and session history. Call recording stores sessions with audit trails, which supports the bill’s allowance for digital records.
• Security. Enterprise security includes encryption, SOC 2 compliance, audit trails and SSO.
• Permit system integration. Blitzz’s Accela integration launches a remote inspection from any permit record, inspection task or code enforcement case and syncs documentation back automatically.

Blitzz Inspect is the Blitzz platform built for this kind of guided remote video inspection, and you can review its pricing before you start a pilot.

• Confirm the tool works in a browser on iOS and Android without an app.
• Test it in your weakest-signal neighborhoods.
• Verify recording, storage and retention settings meet your records policy.
• Confirm integration with your permit tracking system.
• Complete IT security review.

Step 3 and a half: Equip inspectors to guide the camera

A remote inspection is a skill. The inspector has to direct a person who may have never been on a video inspection, and the quality of the footage depends on the quality of the instructions. Look for tools that make guidance simple:

• Markup and annotation lets the inspector draw on live video, so there is no doubt which fitting, wire or connection they mean.
• Live pointer navigation lets the inspector point at a specific part of the frame without freezing the video.
• Remote zoom control lets the inspector zoom in on data plates, labels and connections without asking the applicant to move closer.
• Remote flashlight control lights up dark areas such as panels, attics and crawl spaces.
• Write a short script for opening a session: verify the address, permit number and scope.
• Train inspectors to give one instruction at a time and confirm what they see.
• Run practice sessions with a few friendly contractors before launch.

Step 4: Build an evidence trail

Audits and failure-rate reporting both depend on records. Every remote inspection should leave behind enough evidence to show what the inspector saw and why they approved or failed the work.

• Capture HD photos from the live stream, automatically timestamped and saved to the session history.
• Save GPS location data with each photo so you can verify the work was at the permitted address.
• Generate an inspection report in Word that compiles photos, annotations, location data, timestamps and notes.
• Use an AI call summary to document issues discussed and the result.

Records should not come only from your side. Contractors who document their work as they build make every inspection smoother. BlitzzCam field photo documentation stamps every photo with a GPS location and timestamp and files it under the right job and phase automatically. A contractor who can show verified rough-in and pre-cover photos gives your inspector far more confidence than a loose set of images from a camera roll.

• Publish a list of the photos and views you expect for each permit type.
• Encourage applicants to submit timestamped, location-verified photos before concealment.

Step 5: Prepare for audits and state reporting

The bill lets cities and counties set up onsite audits to confirm that work matches what was shown remotely. If a homeowner or contractor willfully misrepresents the work, the jurisdiction may temporarily ban them from using remote inspections, and neighboring jurisdictions may enforce each other’s bans.

• Decide whether and how your office will run audits, and what share of remote inspections you will sample.
• Define what counts as willful misrepresentation and write an appeal process.
• Tag every inspection as remote or in-person and record pass or fail.
• Track audits by permit type.
• Build a report template for the April 1, 2028 submission to HCD.
• Explore agreements with neighboring jurisdictions for sharing ban information.

Step 6: Educate contractors and homeowners

A remote program only works if people use it correctly. Failed inspections caused by poor camera work will frustrate applicants and eat into your own efficiency gains.

• Publish a one-page guide covering equipment, connectivity, lighting and safety.
• Offer a short webinar or open house before launch.
• Post a simple FAQ about eligible permits and how to request a remote inspection.
• Share examples of what a good remote inspection looks like. Blitzz’s case studies show how other organizations have used remote video inspection.

Your readiness scorecard

Count the boxes you can check. If you have completed most of Steps 1 through 3, you have the foundation in place. If you are missing the policy, the technology or the permit type map, start there, because everything else depends on them. Aim to finish your pilot at least two months before July 1, 2027.

Get ahead of the deadline

AB 1738 will change how California permit offices work, and the offices that prepare early will have the smoothest launch. A clear policy, the right technology, trained inspectors and a reliable evidence trail turn a mandate into a faster, more predictable inspection process.

Explore the full set of Blitzz features or schedule a demo to see how remote video inspection and BlitzzCam field photo documentation can fit your department’s workflow.

AB 1738 Compliance Checklist: What Building Departments Need Before July 1, 2027

AB 1738 puts a date on a change many building departments have debated for years. By July 1, 2027, California cities and counties must offer remote inspections for specified residential projects, and by April 1, 2028 they must begin reporting results to the state. Nine months from now, applicants will be able to ask for a remote inspection and expect a real answer.

This checklist takes a different approach from a general readiness review. It walks through the bill’s requirements one at a time, explains what each one means in practice and lists what your department should have in place. It follows the Assembly committee analysis of the bill, so confirm final language with your counsel before you finalize policy.

If your department already offers some form of remote video inspection, use this as a gap analysis. If you are starting from zero, treat it as a project plan.

The AB 1738 compliance timeline

For many government customers, the hardest part of this timeline is not the technology. It is budget approval, procurement and training. Working backward from July 1, 2027, most departments should select a tool by early 2027 and finish a pilot by spring.

Requirement 1: Offer remote inspections for covered projects

Departments must offer a remote inspection, on request, for specific work in single-family and two-family homes. The must-offer list includes water heaters, HVAC systems, reroofs, minor electrical and plumbing, solar and energy storage, smoke and carbon monoxide detectors, ADUs and JADUs under 800 square feet, and home hardening and defensible space work. A second list, including drywall, siding, windows, decks and demolition, remains at the inspector’s discretion.

• Build a permit-type matrix showing must-offer, discretionary and excluded inspections.
• Note the exclusions, such as foundation and framing inspections for small ADUs.
• Update permit applications and inspection request forms to include a remote option.
• Confirm that the option is available to both homeowners and contractors.

Requirement 2: Support live video and recorded media

The bill requires remote inspections to be conducted offsite, using videoconferencing or recorded photos and videos, at the inspector’s discretion. That means your tools need to handle both modes.

• Choose a platform that works without an app. Browser-based video calling removes the largest barrier to participation, since homeowners can connect from a text message link.
• Confirm support for recorded media when live video is not practical. Offline mode lets applicants capture images and data without a connection and upload them when service returns.
• Test on both iPhone and Android.
• Review the platform’s Blitzz Inspect capabilities against your inspection types.

Requirement 3: Keep cost and delay equal to in-person inspections

The law requires remote inspections at no greater cost and no greater delay than in-person inspections. This is the requirement departments are most likely to overlook, because it is about operations rather than technology.

• Set the same fee for remote and in-person inspections, or document that remote is not more expensive.
• Define a target turnaround for remote requests and monitor it against the in-person average.
• Decide whether remote inspections run on scheduled appointments, an on-demand queue or both.
• Connect the remote workflow to your permit system so scheduling is not a separate process. Blitzz’s Accela integration launches inspections from permit records, and other integrations are available for different systems.

Requirement 4: Keep digital records

The bill allows cities and counties to keep a digital record of each remote inspection for later review, training or compliance. Although the record is optional under the bill, it is practically essential for audits and reporting.

• Enable session recording and set a retention schedule. Call recording and session history stores sessions with complete audit trails.
• Capture HD photos with automatic timestamps.
• Save GPS location data with each photo to verify the site.
• Generate an inspection report in Word that includes photos, annotations, location data and notes.
• Use AI call summaries to document what was reviewed and the outcome.

Requirement 5: Preserve liability protections and security

The bill applies the same liabilities and immunities to remote inspections as to in-person inspections. It does not change your legal exposure, but your records and your security practices will matter if a decision is ever challenged.

• Ask counsel to review your remote policy against the bill’s liability provisions.
• Complete a security review. Look for encryption, SOC 2 compliance and SSO. Blitzz’s security features cover each of these.
• Limit recording access to authorized staff.
• Use silent observer mode so supervisors can join live sessions for quality assurance and training without disrupting the inspection.

Requirement 6: Plan for audits and temporary bans

Departments may set up onsite audits to confirm that work matches what an applicant showed remotely. A person found to have willfully misrepresented the work may be temporarily banned from remote inspections, and jurisdictions may agree to enforce each other’s bans.

Verification is easier when the evidence is strong. Features like OCR text extraction can capture serial and model numbers from equipment data plates during a live session, so you can later confirm that the equipment shown is the equipment installed.

On the applicant side, BlitzzCam field photo documentation stamps every photo with a GPS location and timestamp and files it by job and phase. Contractors who use it can show a verified progress record, which helps your inspectors and protects honest contractors from unfair suspicion.

• Decide whether you will audit and what percentage of remote inspections you will sample.
• Write a definition and appeals process for willful misrepresentation.
• Draft a template for sharing ban information with neighboring jurisdictions.
• Encourage contractors to submit timestamped, location-verified photos.

Requirement 7: Report to the state

Beginning with the report due April 1, 2028, local governments must include information about their remote inspection programs in their annual progress reports to the Department of Housing and Community Development. The report must confirm implementation and include the number of remote and in-person inspections by permit type, failure rates for each, and the number of audits.

• Add a remote or in-person field to every inspection record.
• Record pass or fail for each inspection.
• Track audits and their results.
• Create a report template now and test it with pilot data.
• Assign an owner for the annual submission.

A 9-month action plan

Next 90 days

• Assign a project owner and cross-functional team from permitting, IT and legal.
• Complete the permit-type matrix.
• Draft the remote inspection policy.
• Review tools and request demos.

Months 4 through 6

• Select and procure a platform.
• Complete security review and integration setup.
• Train a pilot group of inspectors.
• Publish contractor and homeowner guidance.

Months 7 through 9

• Run a pilot on high-volume permit types.
• Measure turnaround, pass rates and applicant feedback.
• Adjust the policy and expand to all must-offer types.
• Confirm reporting fields are ready.

Who will be asking for remote inspections

Understanding your applicants helps you design a better program. Contractors working in construction, real estate and property management and utilities and energy already use remote video inspection in their own workflows, and many will expect the same convenience from your office. For a broader look at the tools on the market and what to evaluate, read Blitzz’s guide to the best remote video inspection software, and see how other teams have put the technology to work in these case studies.

Be ready on day one

AB 1738 does not ask building departments to abandon in-person inspections. It asks them to add a reliable, equal alternative for routine work, and to prove with data that it works. Departments that start early can pilot, train and refine, so July 1, 2027 feels like a launch rather than a scramble.

To see how remote video inspection and BlitzzCam field photo documentation can support your compliance plan, schedule a demo with the Blitzz team.