Certified Unified Program Agency (CUPA)
CAL FIRE-Office of the State Fire Marshal (OSFM) is one of four state organizations involved in the Unified Program. California’s Secretary for Environmental Protection established the unified hazardous materials and hazardous waste regulatory program (Unified Program) as described in Chapter 6.11 of the California Health and Safety Code.
The Unified Program is implemented at the local level by government agencies certified by the Secretary of California Environmental Protection Agency (CalEPA). The local Certified Unified Program Agency (CUPA) is required to consolidate, coordinate, and make consistent the administrative requirements, permits, fee structures, and inspection and enforcement activities for these six program elements within its jurisdiction. Most CUPAs have been established as a function of a local environmental health or fire department.
The state agency partners involved in the Unified Program have the responsibility of setting program element standards, working with CalEPA on ensuring program consistency and providing technical assistance to the Unified Program Agencies. The CAL FIRE-OSFM is responsible for ensuring the implementation of the California Fire Code Hazardous Materials Management Plan/Hazardous Materials Inventory Statement (HMMP/HMIS) and the Aboveground Petroleum Storage Act (APSA) program elements. The HMMP/HMIS program ties in closely with the Hazardous Release Response Plan and Inventory (HMRRP) or Hazardous Materials Business Plan (HMBP) program.
The Unified Program consolidates the administration, permits, inspections, and enforcement activities of the following six programs:
California law requires the Secretary of CalEPA to periodically review the ability of each CUPA to carry out the requirements of the Unified Program. The goal is to assess whether the CUPA is effectively implementing all of the program elements and is continually improving to meet the intent of the law: coordination, consolidation, and consistency of all Unified Program elements. CalEPA assesses each CUPA triennially in coordination with three other state organizations with Unified Program responsibilities. The standards for the CUPA evaluation process are described in Title 27 of the California Code of Regulations and expanded in a variety of guidance documents. The CUPA evaluation schedule is found on the CalEPA website. CAL FIRE-OSFM participates in the CUPA evaluation process to ensure each CUPA is implementing the California Fire Code HMMP/HMIS and APSA programs for all regulated facilities within their jurisdiction as specified in state laws and regulations.
The following forms are utilized by the OSFM staff during the CUPA evaluation process.Sacramento Office
cupa@fire.ca.gov
P.O. Box 944246
Sacramento, California 94244-2460
(916) 263-6300
Jim Hosler
Assistant Deputy Director
Chief of Pipeline Safety and "CUPA" Programs
Jim.Hosler@fire.ca.gov
(562) 497-0355
Jennifer Lorenzo
Senior Environmental Scientist (Supervisor)
Jennifer.Lorenzo@fire.ca.gov
(916) 247-0159
Glenn Warner
Senior Environmental Scientist (Specialist)
Glenn.Warner@fire.ca.gov
Mary Wren-Wilson
Environmental Scientist
Mary.Wren-Wilson@fire.ca.gov
(916) 206-0492
Denise Villanueva
Environmental Scientist
Denise.Villanueva@fire.ca.gov
(916) 203-2355