Legislature(2021 - 2022)GRUENBERG 120
03/15/2022 03:00 PM House STATE AFFAIRS
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| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| HB396 | |
| HB291 | |
| HB218 | |
| HB316 | |
| HB309 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| += | HB 396 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | HB 291 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | HB 218 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| *+ | HB 316 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | HB 309 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | TELECONFERENCED | ||
HB 218-SMOKE/FIRE DAMPERS & SMOKE CTRL SYSTEMS
4:07:32 PM
CHAIR KREISS-TOMKINS announced that the next order of business
would be SPONSOR SUBSTITUTE FOR HOUSE BILL NO. 218, "An Act
relating to the inspection and testing of fire dampers, smoke
dampers, combination fire and smoke dampers, and smoke control
systems; and providing for an effective date." [Before the
committee, adopted as the working draft on 3/10/22, was proposed
CS, labeled 32-LS0931\W, Bannister, 3/7/22 ("Version W").]
4:08:11 PM
REPRESENTATIVE CHRIS TUCK, Alaska State Legislature, prime
sponsor, provided introductory remarks on Version W. He
paraphrased the sponsor statement [included in the committee
packet], which read as follows [original punctuation provided]:
As a result of Alaska's cold climate, nearly every
commercial, industrial, and public building must be
heated. The goal of House Bill 218 is to ensure that
the fire life safety components as part of the HVAC
systems in these buildings are functioning as
designed. These components include fire dampers, smoke
dampers, and smoke control systems. House Bill 218
requires technicians and contractors to obtain a
certification recognized by the American National
Standards Institute (ANSI) under the ISO/IEC 17024
standard to perform inspections and testing of fire
dampers, smoke dampers, and smoke control systems.
Alaska law follows the International Fire Code by
requiring the HVAC fire life safety components within
the commercial, industrial, and public buildings to be
inspected and tested consistent with the developed
standards of the National Fire Protection Association
(NFPA). Currently, sprinkler systems, fire alarms, and
fire extinguishers in Alaska are inspected by a
technician and/or contractor that must be certified.
House Bill 218 would create a similar requirement for
a technician and/or contractor to perform periodic
inspections of fire dampers, smoke dampers, and smoke
control systems.
NFPA standards 80 and 105 require fire and smoke
dampers to be inspected within one year of initial
installation and every four years thereafter, except
for hospitals which must be inspected once every six
years. NFPA standard 92 requires dedicated smoke
control systems to be tested every six months and non-
dedicated smoke control systems to be tested annually.
House Bill 218 is a public safety bill that will help
ensure that the heating, ventilation, and air
conditioning fire life safety components utilized and
installed in commercial, industrial, and public
structures in Alaska are safe and in good working
order.
4:10:59 PM
REPRESENTATIVE KAUFMAN considered a scenario in which a small
HVAC business wanted to get a technician certified. He asked
what that process would look like.
REPRESENTATIVE TUCK deferred to Mr. Schurig.
4:12:16 PM
JENS SCHURIG, Organizer, Sheet Metal Workers Local 23, said it
could be done in several ways: A mechanical engineer or a fire
protection engineer could be employed; the business could go
through the sheet metal workers union to get the individual
trained and certified; or the business could create its own
curriculum for testing and inspecting fire smoke dampers and
control systems and have it accredited by the American National
Standards Institute.
4:13:05 PM
REPRESENTATIVE KAUFMAN inquired about the cost of creating a
curriculum.
MR. SCHURIG said it would depend on variety of factors,
including the number of employees and the extent of the
curriculum.
REPRESENTATIVE KAUFMAN inquired about the cost going the union
route.
MR. SCHURIG said it would not cost the company anything to sign
up with the union; however, the company would have to pay its
employees "the package," which was prorated at 16 cents per hour
for training.
REPRESENTATIVE TUCK clarified that union contractors were
automatically paid 16 cents per hour for all training, so it
wouldn't cost the contractor any additional money.
REPRESENTATIVE KAUFMAN asked whether there was a method for
small operators to access the system and the appropriate
training.
REPRESENTATIVE TUCK offered to follow up with the requested
information.
REPRESENTATIVE KAUFMAN reiterated his interest in understanding
the cost of curriculum development for a small business. He
asked whether there was a provision for an individual to work
under a fire protection engineer.
REPRESENTATIVE TUCK answered no.
REPRESENTATIVE KAUFMAN asked whether there were other sources of
training for this kind of work outside the union.
MR. SCHURIG shared his understanding that out-of-state companies
offered the necessary training for the inspection and testing of
fire dampers, smoke dampers, and smoke control systems.
4:19:14 PM
REPRESENTATIVE STORY expressed concern about the impact of the
proposed legislation on areas with fewer inspectors.
REPRESENTATIVE TUCK imagined that the cost would be similar to
the existing cost for inspections of sprinkler systems and
separate inspections of fire alarm notifications.
REPRESENTATIVE STORY asked whether rural areas that lacked a
local mechanical engineer or fire protection engineer had
current protocols in place.
4:21:01 PM
MIKE MASON, Staff, Representative Chris Tuck, Alaska State
Legislature, on behalf of Representative Tuck, prime sponsor,
explained that if the bill were to pass, training availability
would be increased to allow for more people to get certified.
He deferred to Mr. Boothby to explain current practices.
4:21:44 PM
RICHARD BOOTHYBY, Alaska State Fire Marshal, Division of Fire
and Life Safety, Department of Public Safety (DPS), reported
that [building] owners were responsible for the testing of fire
dampers in a specific timeframe.
REPRESENTATIVE STORY sought to confirm that currently, in rural
areas, the [building] owners were responsible for finding a
qualified person to perform the proper inspections.
MR. BOOTHBY confirmed.
REPRESENTATIVE TUCK clarified that current standards identified
the correct process; however, it wasn't being followed, which
was the reason for the proposed legislation.
REPRESENTATIVE STORY asked how violations were handled and
reported.
REPRESENTATIVE TUCK said there were no reporting standards at
present. He noted the bill included reporting provisions.
MR. BOOTHBY said to date, he had not received any reported
violations since he began the job as fire marshal in 2019.
4:25:18 PM
REPRESENTATIVE EASTMAN recalled that a business could ask
someone with working knowledge of the facilities, smoke dampers,
and equipment to conduct the inspection. He asked how many
people were qualified to conduct the inspections in Alaska at
present versus if the bill were to pass.
REPRESENTATIVE TUCK did not know how many mechanical engineers
with fire protection accreditation were in the state of Alaska
at this time. He noted that the legislation would require out-
of-state travel or online course work to get certified.
REPRESENTATIVE EASTMAN asked how many people in Alaska had a
current fire and life safety certification.
REPRESENTATIVE TUCK did not know the answer.
CHAIR KREISS-TOMKINS asked Mr. Schurig if he knew the answer.
MR. SCHURIG reported that there were 41 certified smoke damper
technicians in Alaska; however, there were additional mechanical
engineers and fire protection engineers who could also complete
the job, per the changes in Version W. He anticipated that the
number of certified smoke damper technicians would double in the
year of implementation if the bill were to pass.
REPRESENTATIVE EASTMAN inquired about the number of deaths in
Alaska due to fire and smoke damper failure and asked whether
the bill would reduce that number.
REPRESENTATIVE TUCK deferred to Mr. Boothby.
MR. BOOTHBY said there were no reported fatalities from fire
system failure.
4:31:14 PM
REPRESENTATIVE CLAMAN asked why the bill was limited to
mechanical engineers, as opposed to including civil engineers as
well.
REPRESENTATIVE TUCK said there was a suggestion to include
electrical engineers; however, he didn't feel that it was
necessary to include different types of engineers, they don't
deal with the physical properties of fire dampers specifically.
4:32:33 PM
REPRESENTATIVE VANCE inquired about the wait time for an initial
fire inspection in a building.
MR. BOOTHBY answered 2-3 years for a normal inspection.
REPRESENTATIVE VANCE asked what the timeline would be for
continued inspections if the bill were to pass.
MR. BOOTHBY shared his understanding that if the bill were to
pass, the state fire marshal's office would no longer do the
inspections. Instead, those performing the inspections would
notify the fire marshal of any failures or issues and corrective
action would be taken.
REPRESENTATIVE VANCE considered a scenario in which a building
did not pass the initial inspection. She asked what the
corrective action would entail.
MR. BOOTHBY said typically, failures or issues with fire systems
should be fixed within 30-60 days.
REPRESENTATIVE VANCE asked whether a business would be shut down
if it did not pass the inspection.
MR. BOOTHBY said closing the building would be a last resort.
REPRESENTATIVE VANCE asked how often that occurred.
MR. BOOTHBY said not very often, adding that the goal was
compliance rather than building closure.
4:36:23 PM
CHAIR KREISS-TOMKINS opened public testimony on HB 218.
4:36:59 PM
ED MARTIN expressed his surprise that the invited testifiers did
not have an answer to all of the committee member's questions.
In response to Representative Kaufman's questions about training
and certification, he reported that it took one year and three
months for his son's CDL school to create a curriculum. He
opined that the bill would create a monopolized system for
certain individuals and that the required training would be
difficult to access for the private sector.
4:40:40 PM
DON JAGER, Alaska Fire Chiefs Association (AFCA), stated that
after reviewing the bill, the fire chiefs voted in opposition to
HB 218 at AFCA's annual meeting. He said AFCA supported
increasing fire safety at every opportunity; however, the bill
missed the mark by the inspector certification requirements, he
opined. If pass, the bill would place unfunded enforcement
liability on all jurisdictions across the state due to the
required certification. He explained that the fire chiefs
opposed the bill because the certification requirement would
create a limited pool of inspectors in a vast state. Further,
the state fire marshal and local municipalities already had the
authority to adopt inspection requirements to the fire code,
making the legislation redundant, he opined. He believed that
the lack of fire losses or fatalities indicated that this was
not a significant problem in Alaska. He pointed out that if
passed, the bill would create a large number of buildings across
the state that were no longer in compliance with fire code based
on inspector certification. In conclusion, he requested that
the inspection authority remain with the state fire marshal and
local municipalities to regulate.
4:43:11 PM
REPRESENTATIVE VANCE asked whether Mr. Jager had considered the
CSHB 218, Version W, [adopted 3/10/22].
MR. JAGER said he had not.
REPRESENTATIVE VANCE said she would appreciate further feedback
from AFCA on Version W.
4:43:57 PM
BEN ANGLEN shared that in his experience, fire dampers were
often propped open with a screw or some other contraption due to
a lack of training, which resulted in damper malfunction in the
case of a catastrophic fire. From his perspective, he said, the
codes were not being met.
4:46:41 PM
MR. SCHURIG emphasized that this was a public safety bill. He
anecdotally reported that the vast majority of fire dampers were
not working. He stated that the bill would essentially mandate
training, thereby initiating an informational campaign, which
would create more knowledgeable and capable individuals. He
reiterated his belief that HB 218 would fix the problem.
Further, he pointed out that there were enough engineers in
Alaska to do this work, adding that eventually, the training
would be offered to everyone.
4:49:11 PM
JUSTIN CARPENTER, Service Technician, Cool Air Mechanical; Sheet
Metal Union Local 23, shared his experience testing smoke and
fire dampers across the state, noting that the majority did not
function properly. He concluded that proper training was
lacking.
4:51:21 PM
CHRIS MILLER, Alaska Professional Design Council, stated his
opposition to the bill, opining that the statutory language
would be redundant, as fire departments were already required to
perform these inspections. Nonetheless, he agreed that the
education and training on fire safety life systems could be
improved upon.
4:53:28 PM
REPRESENTATIVE CLAMAN asked whether Version W, which would allow
mechanical engineers to perform the inspections, changed Mr.
Miller's position on the bill.
MR. MILLER answered no; nonetheless, he acknowledged that the
provision in question was an improvement.
REPRESENTATIVE CLAMAN directed attention to page 2, line 19 of
Version W and asked whether the language should be broadened by
replacing "mechanical engineer" with "engineer".
MR. MILLER pointed out that "architect" would work too, as the
systems could be inspected and understood by other types of
technicians. He recommended keeping it as broad as possible.
4:56:21 PM
CHRISTINE NESS, Senior Fire Protection Engineer, in response to
Mr. Miller, pointed out that an architect may not be skilled in
the mechanical systems that were required for this type of work.
She opined that fire and smoke damper installers should be
responsible for testing and installing these systems.
4:57:47 PM
CHAIR KREISS-TOMKINS closed public testimony and announced that
the bill was held over.