The State Fire Marshal (SFM) has the right to inspect any fire control system during and after construction to determine that such system meets the standards set forth in the laws and rules of the state. Section 633.312, ....

 

DEPARTMENT OF FINANCIAL SERVICES

Division of State Fire Marshal

RULE NO.:RULE TITLE:

69A-46.041Inspection Requirements for Fire Protection Systems

PURPOSE AND EFFECT: The State Fire Marshal (SFM) has the right to inspect any fire control system during and after construction to determine that such system meets the standards set forth in the laws and rules of the state. Section 633.312, F.S., requires the SFM to adopt rules to implement a standardized reporting format for a uniform summary report. The proposed amendments will adopt Form DFS-K3-2015, Uniform Inspection, Testing, and Maintenance (ITM) Report, that the contractor must complete and submit to the local authority having jurisdiction (AHJ), and make grammatical changes and other required updates.

SUMMARY: The proposed changes will update the rule and adopt a uniform summary report to be submitted by the contractor to the local AHJ, and make grammatical changes and other required updates.

SUMMARY OF STATEMENT OF ESTIMATED REGULATORY COSTS AND LEGISLATIVE RATIFICATION:

The Agency has determined that this will not have an adverse impact on small business or likely increase directly or indirectly regulatory costs in excess of $200,000 in the aggregate within one year after the implementation of the rule. A SERC has not been prepared by the Agency.

The Agency has determined that the proposed rule is not expected to require legislative ratification based on the statement of estimated regulatory costs or if no SERC is required, the information expressly relied upon and described herein: The Department conducted an economic analysis of the potential impact of the proposed rule amendments and determined that there will be no adverse economic impact or regulatory increases that would require legislative ratification.

Any person who wishes to provide information regarding a statement of estimated regulatory costs, or provide a proposal for a lower cost regulatory alternative must do so in writing within 21 days of this notice.

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY: 633.104, 633.308, 633.312 FS.

LAW IMPLEMENTED: 33.306, 633.308, 633.312, 633.338 FS.

IF REQUESTED WITHIN 21 DAYS OF THE DATE OF THIS NOTICE, A HEARING WILL BE HELD AT THE DATE, TIME AND PLACE SHOWN BELOW (IF NOT REQUESTED, THIS HEARING WILL NOT BE HELD):

DATE AND TIME: June 30, 2021, 10:00 a.m.

PLACE: The hearing (if requested) will only take place via telephone conference call. Anyone wishing to participate in this hearing must participate via a telephone conference call using the phone number [phone] and access code: 2660150

Pursuant to the provisions of the Americans with Disabilities Act, any person requiring special accommodations to participate in this workshop/meeting is asked to advise the agency at least 5 days before the workshop/meeting by contacting: Keith McCarthy at [phone] or [e-mail]. If you are hearing or speech impaired, please contact the agency using the Florida Relay Service, 1(800)955-8771 (TDD) or 1(800)955-8770 (Voice).

THE PERSON TO BE CONTACTED REGARDING THE PROPOSED RULE IS: Keith McCarthy, Safety Program Manager, Bureau of Fire Prevention, 200 E. Gaines Street, Tallahassee, FL 32399-0342, [phone], [e-mail].

 

THE FULL TEXT OF THE PROPOSED RULE IS:

69A-46.041 Inspection Requirements for Fire Protection Systems.

(1) A Fire Protection Contractor, contracting to perform inspecting, testing, and maintenance (ITM) service on a fire protection system must shall comply with the requirements of chapter 633, F.S., and the applicable standards in NFPA 25, Standard for the Inspection, Testing, and Maintenance of Water-Based Fire Protection Systems (ITM), which is incorporated by reference standards as adopted in rule chapter 69A-3.012, F.A.C. When an inspection/test is required to be performed at a specified frequency, up to and including annually, by NFPA 25, all inspection/tests required more frequently than the specified frequency are also required to be performed, e.g., performance of an annual inspection/test would include the inspection/test required on a daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly and semi-annual frequency.

(2) Each system that has been inspected, tested, or maintained by a Ffire Pprotection Ccontractor, or his or her permitted Water-Based Fire Protection Inspector, must shall have a record tag of durable and weather resistant material placed on the system’s main water control valve.

(a) For sprinkler systems, including water spray fixed systems and foam-water sprinkler systems, the main water control valve is shall be defined as the valve upstream of the water flow alarm device that controls the entire system.

(b) through (g) No change.

(3) Inspection Tags.

(a) After inspection and testing, an inspection tag shall be completed indicating all work that has been done, and then attached to the system’s main water control valve in such a position as to permit convenient inspection and not hamper activation or operation. A new inspection tag must shall be attached to the system’s main water control valve each time an inspection and test service is performed.

(b) No change.

(c) Inspection tags must shall bear the following information in an easy-to-read format:

1. ‘DO NOT REMOVE BY ORDER OF THE STATE FIRE MARSHAL.’ This particular information must shall be in a minimum of 10-point pt type and in all capital letters;

2. through 8. No change.

9. The reverse of the RED or YELLOW tag must shall include at least four separate boxes for the listing of repair work as follows:

a. through e. No change.

(d) No change.

(e) An inspection tag shall only be removed by the Fire Protection System Contractor or his or her permitted Water-Based Fire Protection Inspector.

(f) Compliance and Non-compliance Tags that are greater than 1-year old shall be removed from the system except those tags used for 3 and 5-year inspection/tests. The Compliance and Non-compliance Tags shall remain on the system until replaced with the next three 3 or five 5-year inspection/test tag. Water Based Fire Protection Inspectors shall not remove Compliance and Non-compliance Tags from the system when the tags are less than 1-year old.

(g) A fire protection system that has been repaired to correct a noted deficiency or impairment documented during an inspection and test service is shall not be required to be reinspected by a Water Based Fire Protection Inspector until the next inspection and test scheduled in accordance with NFPA 25. The repair must shall be documented on the reverse side of the RED or YELLOW tag and a retagging of the system is shall not be required.

(4) Compliance and Non-compliance Tag.

(a) If a fire protection system is found to be in compliance with the applicable NFPA ITM standards, a GREEN Compliance Tag must shall be attached to the main water control valve in such a manner as to be plainly visible and not more than 60 inches above the finished floor. GREEN tags shall not be placed on a system if deficiencies or impairments still exist from a previous inspection.

(b) If a fire protection system is found to have noncritical deficiencies and is not in compliance with the applicable NFPA ITM standards, a completed YELLOW Non-compliance Tag must shall be attached to the main water control valve of the system to indicate that corrective action is necessary. The building owner or authorized representative must shall be notified by copy of the NFPA 25 inspection report within 30 days of the inspection. If the building owner or authorized representative has not contracted with the inspecting contractor so that the noncritical deficiencies are corrected within 90 days from the date of the inspection, or the inspecting contractor has not received confirmation from the building owner or authorized representative that the corrections have been performed by another licensed contractor, the inspecting contractor must shall notify the local authority having jurisdiction (AHJ).

(c) If the system has critical deficiencies or is found to be impaired, a completed RED Non-Compliance Tag must shall be attached to the main water control valve of the system, and the contractor or inspector must shall notify the building owner or authorized representative within 24 hours of the time of the inspection. If the building owner or authorized representative has not contracted with the inspecting contractor so that the critical deficiencies are corrected within 30 days from the date of the inspection, or the inspecting contractor has not received confirmation from the building owner or authorized representative that the corrections have been performed by another licensed contractor, the inspecting contractor must shall notify the local AHJ authority having jurisdiction. If a system is found to be impaired, the inspecting contractor must shall notify the local AHJ authority having jurisdiction within 72 hours of the time of the inspection if the impairment has not been corrected within 72 hours of the finding.

(d) If a system is found to have noncritical deficiencies or critical deficiencies, and the building tenant(s) is different from the building owner, the building owner must shall notify the tenant(s) within 30 days of receipt of the NFPA 25 inspection report.

(e) If a system is found to have impairments, and the building tenant(s) is different from the building owner, the building owner must shall notify the tenant(s) within 72 hours of receiving notification of the impairment.

(5) through (6) No change.

(7) Form DFS-K3-2015, Uniform Inspection, Testing, and Maintenance (ITM) Report (Eff. 03/2021) must  The inspection report shall be provided to the local Authority Having Jurisdiction (AHJ) in a format mutually determined by the contractor, as mutually agreed between the contractor and the local AHJ, using one of the following means: (a) by United States mail; (b) by hand delivery; (c) by electronic submission; or (d) through a third-party vendor that collects the reports on behalf of the local AHJ. Form DFS-K3-2015 is hereby incorporated by reference and is available on the following link: <insert DOS website address>; or on the Division’s website at: myfloridacfo.com/Division/SFM; or by contacting the Regulatory Licensing Section, Bureau of Fire Prevention, Division of State Fire Marshal, 200 E. Gaines Street, Tallahassee, Florida 32399-0342, Phone: [phone]. No other records storage format or transmission method shall be required other than what is required in this rule or NFPA 25, as adopted in rule chapter 69A-3, F.A.C.

(8) The contractor or his or her permitted Water-Based Fire Protection Inspector must shall complete the inspection reports as required in NFPA 25, which is incorporated by reference as adopted in rule chapter 69A-3.012, F.A.C., that outlines all points of the inspection, test, and maintenance as required by the applicable NFPA ITM standards. A copy of the NFPA 25 inspection report must shall be provided to the owner at the completion of each inspection performed.

(9) The NFPA 25 inspection report must shall include a detailed explanation of every deficiency, and indicate if the inspection is a weekly, monthly, quarterly or annual inspection. The NFPA 25 inspection report must shall include the name of the permitted Water-Based Fire Protection Inspector, the inspector permit number, the inspector’s signature, the date and time of the inspection, and the signature of the owner or the owner’s representative.

(10) Pursuant to the provisions of section 633.312, F.S., it is the owner’s responsibility to maintain the fire protection system and notify the tenant(s) of deficiencies and impairments in accordance with this rule. Affixing an inspection tag as required herein does not eliminate responsibility nor will shall a transfer of risk be construed.

(11) A contractor or licensee that performs ITM services in accordance with the applicable NFPA ITM standards and this rule will shall be deemed to have performed to the required standard of care in performing such services.

Rulemaking Authority 633.104, 633.308, 633.312 FS. Law Implemented 633.306, 633.308, 633.312, 633.338 FS. History–New 10-20-93, Amended 11-21-01, Formerly 4A-46.041, Amended 5-18-08, 7-19-16,__________.

 

NAME OF PERSON ORIGINATING PROPOSED RULE: Keith McCarthy, Safety Program Manager

NAME OF AGENCY HEAD WHO APPROVED THE PROPOSED RULE: Jimmy Patronis, Chief Financial

DATE PROPOSED RULE APPROVED BY AGENCY HEAD: June 4, 2021

DATE NOTICE OF PROPOSED RULE DEVELOPMENT PUBLISHED IN FAR: November 12, 2020