The Santa Monica City Council unanimously approved a groundbreaking self-certification pilot program Tuesday, Dec. 16, that will allow businesses to obtain building permits in as little as one day, bypassing the traditional review process that can take weeks.
The program, launching in April 2026, represents what city officials say is the most expansive self-certification effort in the region, eliminating not just building code review but all city staff review for qualifying commercial tenant improvement projects.
"This is very unique," said Jing Yeo, community development director. "Most cities only do the building code portion of this. We are removing all staff reviews — that includes fire, public works, city planning and mobility review from certain classes of projects."
The council modified staff recommendations during the meeting to expand the program's reach, lowering experience requirements for participating architects and adding restaurants with some limitations.
Under the program's first phase, licensed architects who have completed at least two similar projects in Santa Monica over the past 15 years can self-certify that their plans comply with all applicable codes. The architect assumes full liability for the project's compliance.
Projects must be non-structural commercial tenant improvements — interior renovations of existing commercial spaces that don't alter the building's structure or exterior. Staff estimates these projects account for approximately 30% to 36% of the city's building permits.
"The trade-off will be that the city may collect less plan check fees, as it's based on cost recovery of staff time," Yeo told the council. "Obviously, a plan check's not happening."
The program aims to address two key goals: reducing staff workload on routine projects so they can focus on complex developments, and accelerating the city's economic recovery by helping businesses open faster.
In a significant modification to staff recommendations, the council voted to include restaurants in the self-certification program for building code compliance, though public works review will still be required. Staff had initially recommended excluding all food and beverage uses, citing concerns about industrial waste systems, grease traps and trash enclosure requirements.
"These things are also very, very expensive and hard to fix once they're built," Yeo said. "Better to catch those things early."
However, Councilmember Jesse Zwick pushed for the compromise, noting that restaurants are crucial to the city's vision for revitalizing downtown and other commercial areas.
"Obviously, restaurants are high on that list," Zwick said. "Additionally, restaurants are struggling in general right now."
The modified approach allows restaurants to self-certify building code portions while still requiring public works staff to review waste management systems and trash enclosures, with staff committing to one- to two-week turnaround times for those reviews.
To ensure accountability, the program includes a "three strikes" provision. Licensed professionals who commit three violations — such as working outside the project scope, not adhering to building codes, or failing to recycle construction materials — will be permanently disqualified from the program. Violations can be appealed to the Building and Fire Life Safety Commission.
All projects will still undergo the standard inspection process during and after construction to verify code compliance.
The council directed staff to implement two additional phases within a year. Phase 2 will cover detached accessory dwelling units and is set to launch six months after Phase 1. Phase 3 will include single-unit dwellings and additions, launching six months after Phase 2. Staff indicated the timeline could be compressed depending on the performance of artificial intelligence plan-check tools currently being developed.
Santa Monica's program goes further than similar initiatives in other California jurisdictions. The City and County of Los Angeles both offer self-certification programs, but only for building code review and limited to single-family homes impacted by the Eaton and Palisades fires. Chicago and San Diego County offer programs for small commercial projects, also limited to building code review.
The program also includes amendments to construction waste recycling requirements, shifting from an upfront deposit system to fines assessed only for non-compliance, reducing the financial burden on small businesses at the start of projects. The council also approved changes to trash enclosure requirements to align with new state mandatory organics recycling laws, which require accommodating three waste streams instead of two.