Terms of Use

Effective as of February 7, 2023

Introduction

Thank you for visiting the official website (“Website”) for the Earthquake Brace + Bolt program. Established by the California Residential Mitigation Program (CRMP), EBB offers up to $3,000 to help California homeowners retrofit their qualifying house. CRMP was established in 2011 to help Californians strengthen their homes against damage from earthquakes. CRMP is a joint powers authority created by the California Earthquake Authority and the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services.

CRMP’s programs include the Earthquake Brace + Bolt Program (“EBB”) and the Earthquake Soft Story Program (“ESS”). (Collectively “we’, “us”, “our”). Your use of the Website is subject to the below Terms of Use (“Terms”), EBB and ESS Program Disclaimer, Social Media Guidelines, and the Privacy Policy, which may be updated from time to time, and incorporated herein by this reference. The Terms, the Social Media Guidelines, Program Disclaimers and the Privacy Policy apply only to the Website. Therefore, once you link to another site, you are subject to the policies of the new site.

Applicable Terms of Website Usage

As a condition of your use of our services, including this Website or others we maintain, or to participate in any way in the EBB, ESS or other programs we provide (our “Services”), you agree without limitation or qualification to these Terms.

We reserve the right to revise these Terms without notice. By continuing to use our Services, you acknowledge and agree to our current and any future Terms. Please read the Terms carefully and make sure you understand it. If you do not understand the Terms or object to any part of it, please immediately discontinue use of this Website.

Your Information

All information that you share with us, or that is automatically shared in the course of the Services, including your use of the Website to register or to create, manage, or use your account, will be used and processed in accordance with these Terms and our Privacy Policy.

By providing us with your contact information, you give us permission to send you information, messages, or otherwise contact you using any of the contact methods you provide (including email and text messages).

Accounts

You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your registration and account information, including your username and password. We encourage you to safeguard this information and not share it with anyone. You must promptly notify us of any unauthorized use of your registration and account.

If your EBB or ESS registration or account has been restricted, suspended, or terminated, neither you nor anyone acting on your behalf may register again or open another account with us.

If you have any questions about registering or opening an account with us, please Contact Us.

California Transparency Laws

By use of our Services, you understand and acknowledge that we are a California joint powers authority entity subject to the California Public Records Act (California Government Code Section 6250 et seq.) and other open government and transparency laws, and that certain information you provide in connection with the Services may be subject to disclosure and production pursuant to those laws.

Emergency and Safety Issues

Any questions or concerns relating to emergency or safety issues should be directed to appropriate authorities and qualified professionals (such as by calling 911 for emergencies or your local building inspection offices for building safety issues). We assume no responsibility to deal with such emergency or safety issues.

Content and Third Party Information on this Website

We provide information from a variety of sources, including third parties on this Website or through links on this website (collectively, “Content”). Content is provided solely for general informational purposes, and not intended to provide any engineering, technical, commercial, legal advice or advice of any other kind. We urge you to consult with your own advisors and consultants before taking any action based on information appearing on this Website or any site to which it may be linked. This Website and the Content may only be used as intended and as permitted by law and by us.

By accessing this Website or its Content you may encounter websites, content, data, information, applications, or materials from third parties (“Third-Party Materials”). Third-Party Materials are provided solely as a convenience to users of this Website and Content. We do not:

• warrant, control or guarantee the accuracy, legality, relevance, timeliness, or completeness of Third-Party Materials;
• endorse such Third-Party Materials or the views they express, or the products/services they offer;
• and cannot authorize the use of any intellectual property in the Third Party Materials, including their copyrighted materials;
• guarantee that outside websites comply with the accessibility requirements of Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act; and
• assume or have any liability or responsibility to you for any claims arising out of or related to the Third-Party Materials.

Your use of any Third-Party Materials is governed by the Third Party’s terms and conditions of use and privacy policies.

Ownership of Intellectual Property

Using our Services does not give you ownership of any intellectual property rights or other rights in the Content you access. The availability of any Content on our Website is not a waiver of any proprietary rights, such as patent, license, copyright, trademark, or other intellectual property rights we may have in said Content.

Our logos and other official insignia may not be used or reproduced without our written permission. References by third parties to any specific service mark or trademark, or the use of proprietary images, are not controlled by us. We make no claim regarding the service marks, trademarks or proprietary images of third parties and do not constitute or imply association, endorsement or recommendation of the owners or users of such marks.

If you believe your copyright has been infringed on the Website, please email us at info@EarthquakeBraceBolt.com or at info@EarthquakeSoftStory.com with relevant information and any supporting materials.

Prohibited and Restricted Activities

You agree that your use of our Services will not:

• be fraudulent, inaccurate or misleading;
• infringe any third party's proprietary intellectual property rights or rights of publicity or privacy;
• be illegal or violate any federal, state or local law, statute, ordinance, regulation or ethical code;
• be defamatory, trade libelous, unlawfully threatening or unlawfully harassing;
• contain sexual or ethnic slurs or any representation of obscenities;
• be used to solicit users of our Services for any purpose except those we have specifically permitted in these Terms or otherwise in writing;
• contain any viruses, Trojan horses, or other computer programming routines that may damage, detrimentally interfere with, surreptitiously intercept or expropriate any system, data or personal information;
• cause us to lose (in whole or in part) the services of our Internet Service Providers (“ISPs”) or other suppliers of data and equipment;
• link directly or indirectly to or include descriptions of goods or services that are prohibited under these Terms or to which you do not have a right to link to or include; or
• use any "deep-link", "page-scrape", "robot", "spider" or other automatic device, program, algorithm or methodology to access, acquire, copy, obtain or monitor any portion of the Website or any Content.

We reserve the right to restrict, suspend or stop your use of our Services if you breach these Terms.

No Warranties or Liabilities

THIS WEBSITE AND ITS CONTENT ARE PROVIDED “AS IS” AND WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND.

UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES WILL WE BE LIABLE FOR ANY LOSS OR DAMAGE CAUSED BY YOUR USE OF THIS WEBSITE, OR YOUR RELIANCE ON INFORMATION IN OUR CONTENT, THIRD-PARTY MATERIALS, PROGRAMS, OR SERVICES, WHETHER SUCH ARE FROM EBB, ESS, CRMP OR FROM THIRD PARTIES (SUCH AS CONTRACTORS, DESIGN PROFESSIONALS, HOMEOWNERS, GOVERNMENTAL AGENCIES OR OTHER THIRD PARTIES) OR A LINKED SITE. UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES WILL WE BE LIABLE FOR ANY LOSS OR DAMAGE CAUSED BY YOUR RELIANCE ON ANY PRODUCT OR SERVICE OBTAINED FROM A THIRD PARTY OR A LINKED SITE OR ANY THIRD-PARTY MATERIALS. USE OF THE CONTENT, THIRD-PARTY MATERIALS, PROGRAMS, OR SERVICES WE PROVIDE IS AT YOUR SOLE DISCRETION AND FULL ASSUMPTION OF RISK.

AS A CONDITION OF YOUR USE OF OUR SERVICES, WEBSITES, AND ANY CONTENT, YOU AGREE TO DEFEND, INDEMNIFY, AND HOLD CRMP AND ITS OFFICERS, DIRECTORS, EMPLOYEES, STAFF, AND AGENTS HARMLESS FROM AND AGAINST ANY CLAIMS, LIABILITIES, COSTS, DAMAGES, LOSSES, AND EXPENSES, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION REASONABLE LEGAL AND ACCOUNTING FEES, ARISING OUT OF OR IN ANY WAY CONNECTED WITH YOUR ACCESS TO OR USE OF OUR WEBSITES, SERVICES, CONTENT, PRODUCTS, ANY THIRD-PARTY MATERIALS, OR YOUR VIOLATION OF THESE TERMS.

Dispute Resolution

ARBITRATION NOTICE: THESE TERMS CONTAIN AN ARBITRATION CLAUSE. YOU AGREE THAT ANY DISPUTES WILL BE RESOLVED BY MANDATORY BINDING ARBITRATION, AND YOU WAIVE ANY RIGHT TO PARTICIPATE IN A CLASS-ACTION LAWSUIT OR CLASS-WIDE ARBITRATION.

Informal Procedure

You are required to follow this informal dispute resolution procedure prior to initiating the arbitration procedure described below if the parties cannot resolve the dispute informally.

In the event a controversy or claim arises out of your use of our Services, you may contact us to discuss the matter informally with the managing director or their designee. If the controversy or claim is not resolved through that discussion, you may send a letter to the managing director.

The managing director or their designee will meet in person or by telephone within 10 business days of receipt of the letter or such longer period as may be mutually agreed upon in writing.

The managing director will provide you with a written decision within 20 days of the conclusion of the meeting or the telephone call.

Mandatory Arbitration

You agree that all claims and disputes arising out of or relating to these Terms or the use of the Services will be resolved by binding arbitration on an individual basis.

You acknowledge that: (1) you are giving up the right to sue in court, including the right to trial by jury, except as provided by the rules of the American Arbitration Association; (2) arbitration awards are generally final and binding and the ability to have a court reverse or modify an arbitration award is limited; (3) the ability to obtain documents, witness statements and other discovery is generally more limited in arbitration than in court proceedings; (4) the arbitrators do not have to explain the reasons for their award; and (5) the rules of the American Arbitration Association may impose time limits for bringing a claim in arbitration.

The place of arbitration shall be Sacramento County, California.

Miscellaneous

These Terms control the relationship between you and CRMP and its programs. They do not create any rights for anyone else. If it turns out that a particular Term is not enforceable, no other Term will be affected. The laws of the State of California, without regard to its conflict of law provisions, shall govern any disputes arising out of or relating to these Terms and our Services, and these Terms shall be construed in accordance with those laws.

Visit our Disclaimer for more information.

Contact Us

Please Contact Us with any questions or comments regarding the Terms.