HOUSE BILL 312

53rd legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - first session, 2017

INTRODUCED BY

Rebecca Dow

AN ACT

RELATING TO FIRE PREVENTION; PROVIDING A STATE INSPECTOR OR CERTIFIED BUILDING OFFICIAL WITH JURISDICTION OVER FIRE PREVENTION-RELATED BUILDING CODE REQUIREMENTS FOR NEW CONSTRUCTION AND BUILDING ALTERATIONS.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:

     SECTION 1. Section 59A-52-15 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1984, Chapter 127, Section 961) is amended to read:

     "59A-52-15. FIRE PREVENTION--[PUBLIC OCCUPANCIES] COMMERCIAL OCCUPANCY REGULATIONS.--

          A. For prevention and control of fires, the [state] fire [board] marshal division of the public regulation commission shall formulate, adopt and promulgate, and amend or revise [regulations] rules for fire prevention and [safe conduct or] use of [public occupancies. For the purposes of this provision, "public occupancies" consist of places of assembly, educational occupancies, institutional occupancies, residential occupancies consisting of four (4) or more family units, mercantile occupancies, office occupancies, industrial occupancies, storage occupancies and miscellaneous structures consisting of towers, underground structures and windowless buildings and all buildings owned or occupied by the state government or any political subdivision thereof or by municipal governments and regulations] commercial occupancies and rules concerning the [sale, servicing] maintenance or use of fire safety prevention, detection or suppression equipment or materials. The [regulations] rules shall be adopted after notice and public hearing. The notice shall be entitled "notice of proposed [rule making] rulemaking", and it shall contain the date of the hearing and shall state the subject of the hearing. A copy of the notice, along with a copy of the proposed [regulations] rules, shall be filed with the [supreme court librarian] records center at least twenty [(20)] days prior to the hearing. In addition, the board shall make available for inspection at its offices, a copy of the proposed [regulations] rules.

          B. The rules [and regulations] shall follow nationwide standards except in the area of life safety codes, which shall be compatible with the [Uniform] New Mexico commercial building code [as revised from time to time, issued by the international conference of building officials].             C. When related to new construction or an existing building undergoing alterations, the general construction bureau chief of the construction industries division of the regulation and licensing department or a certified building official of a municipality is the authority having jurisdiction over the interpretation, application, inspection and certification of fire code requirements, or building code requirements related to fire prevention.

          [C.] D. The rules [and regulations] shall allow reasonable provision under which facilities in service prior to the effective date of the rules [and regulations] and not in strict conformity therewith may be continued in service. [Noncomforming] Nonconforming facilities in service prior to the adoption of [regulations which] rules that are found by the state fire marshal to constitute a distinct hazard to life or property shall not be exempt from [regulations] rules nor permitted to continue in service."

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