|
|
ARIZONA HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES57th Legislature, 2nd Regular Session |
House: GOV DP 7-0-0-0 |
HB 2324: fire code; municipalities; county buildings
Sponsor: Representative Kupper, LD 25
House Engrossed
Overview
Permits municipalities and the Office of the State Fire Marshal (Office) to enter into an intergovernmental agreement with a county on behalf of the Office to enforce the fire code adopted by the municipality for county-owned buildings if various conditions are met.
History
Under the direction of the State Forester, the Office's Assistant Director or one of their designees must adopt, by rule, a state fire code that establishes minimum standards for: 1) safeguarding life and property from fire and fire hazards; 2) the prevention of fires and alleviation of fire hazards; 3) the storage, sale, distribution and use of dangerous chemicals, combustibles, flammable liquids, explosives and radioactive materials; 4) the installation, maintenance and use of fire escapes, fire protection equipment, fire alarm systems, smoke detectors and fire extinguishing equipment; 5) the means and adequacy of fire protection and exit in case of fire in places in which numbers of persons work, live or congregate, excluding outlined family dwellings; and 6) other matters relating to fire prevention and control that are considered necessary by the Office.
Statute exempts any city with a population over 100,000 that has in effect a nationally recognized fire code from compliance with the state fire code if it has enacted an ordinance to assume such jurisdiction from the Office. Said cities are not exempt from the state fire code for state or county-owned buildings (A.R.S. § 37-1383).
Under the Department of Forestry and Fire Management (DFFM), the Office currently operates in accordance with the 2018 International Fire Code (DFFM).
Provisions
1. Allows a municipality that has adopted its own nationally recognized fire code to request the Office's Assistant Director to enter into an intergovernmental agreement with a county on behalf of the Office to enforce the fire code adopted by the municipality for county-owned buildings if all the following conditions apply:
a. the municipality submits the request in conjunction with the applicable county;
b. the enforcement of the state adopted fire code for the county-owned buildings is unduly burdensome for a county or municipality; and
c. the municipality's current fire code and enforcement, including county-owned buildings' occupancy and hazard regulation, are not less stringent than the current state fire code as jointly determined by the applicable municipality official and the Office's Assistant Director. (Sec. 1)
2. Proves any of the following evidence is sufficient to determine that the enforcement of state adopted fire code for county-owned buildings is unduly burdensome:
a. the enforcement of the state adopted fire code requires the hiring of additional staff;
b. the enforcement of the state adopted fire code requires additional staff training; or
c. review by the Office's Assistant Director substantially exceeds the review's time frame if conducted by the applicable county or municipality. (Sec. 1)
3. Requires the Office's Assistant Director to take action on a request within 30 days and state the reason for the approval or denial. (Sec. 1)
4. Stipulates that a request is automatically approved if the Office's Assistant Director does not act on a request within 30 days. (Sec. 1)
5. Makes a municipality solely responsible for the inspection and enforcement of the fire code in all county-owned buildings within its jurisdiction if it enters into an intergovernmental agreement. (Sec. 1)
6. Requires municipalities that enter into an intergovernmental agreement for fire code inspection to provide the Office with a record of the certificate of occupancy and applicable fire code inspection reports with specified information in a manner determined by the Office. (Sec. 1)
7. Names this act as the Fire Marshal Bill Burns Act. (Sec. 2)
8.
9.
10. ---------- DOCUMENT FOOTER ---------
11. Initials ML HB 2324
12. 3/3/2026 Page 0 House Engrossed
13.
14. ---------- DOCUMENT FOOTER ---------