Bill 1487

                    Current Status

Bill Number:               1487
Ratification Number:       656
Act Number                 535
Introducing Body:          Senate
Subject:                   State Fire Marshal Appeals Board

(A535, R656, S1487)

AN ACT TO AMEND THE CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, BY ADDING ARTICLE 5 TO CHAPTER 9, TITLE 23 SO AS TO PROVIDE FOR THE STATE FIRE MARSHAL BOARD OF APPEALS AND ITS MEMBERS AND POWERS; TO AMEND SECTION 23-9-150, RELATING TO BUILDINGS DECLARED TO BE UNSAFE BY THE STATE FIRE MARSHAL, SO AS TO DELETE AN APPEAL TO A COURT OF COMPETENT JURISDICTION AND PROVIDE THAT EMERGENCY DECISIONS OF THE FIRE MARSHAL ARE NOT STAYED PENDING APPEAL TO THE APPEALS BOARD; TO PROVIDE FOR THE APPOINTMENT AND TERMS OF THE INITIAL MEMBERS OF THE BOARD; AND TO AMEND THE 1976 CODE BY ADDING SECTION 23-9-155 SO AS TO PROVIDE THE REQUIREMENTS OF THE STATE FIRE MARSHAL AND HIS AGENTS BEFORE CHANGES IN A BUILDING OR STRUCTURE ARE REQUIRED OR PENALTIES ARE ASSESSED.

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:

State Fire Marshal Appeals Board

SECTION 1. Chapter 9, Title 23 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding:

Section 23-9-510. The State Fire Marshal Board of Appeals is created and is composed of nine members appointed by the Governor upon the advice and consent of the Senate. The appeals board includes one registered architect, one member of the South Carolina State Fire Commission appointed by its chairman, one general contractor, one certified building inspector, one consumer, one registered electrical engineer, one speciality licensed contractor, one building materials supplier, and one structural engineer. Not more than one type of profession or occupation may be represented on the board.

The terms of the members are four years and until their successors are appointed and qualify. Vacancies must be filled in the manner of the original appointments for the unexpired portion of the term only. The Governor shall appoint the chairman. At the first meeting in each year the appeals board shall elect a vice-chairman and other officers the appeals board considers necessary and adopt appropriate rules of procedure.

In addition to the appointed members of the State Fire Marshal Appeals Board, one member of the House of Representatives appointed by the Speaker of the House and one member of the Senate appointed by the President of the Senate shall serve as ex officio members of this appeals board for terms coterminous with those of their elected terms of office.

Section 23-9-520. (A) The members of the State Fire Marshal Appeals Board shall receive mileage, subsistence, and per diem as provided by law for members of state boards, committees, and commissions for attendance at board meetings or when engaged in business of the appeals board, payable from appropriations made from the general fund of the State upon the issuance of vouchers signed by the chairman of the appeals board.

(B) The appeals board shall meet within sixty days after notice of appeal has been received or at other times upon call of the chairman. Four members constitute a quorum for the conduct of business.

(C) The Division of State Fire Marshal of the State Budget and Control Board shall provide administrative support and other assistance as may be necessary to carry out the purposes of this article.

Section 23-9-530. (A) The State Fire Marshal Appeals Board may hear appeals from a municipality, county, or state agency or an owner or occupant, or contractor of premises directly affected or aggrieved by a decision of the State Fire Marshal issued in accordance with Section 23-9-150 or any decision of the fire marshal issued enforcing or interpreting regulations promulgated by the fire commission. Notice of appeal must be in writing, must contain the specific grounds of appeal, and must be served by mail or otherwise on the fire marshal within thirty days after the decision appealed from is rendered.

(B) The hearing before the appeals board and the final decision or order of the appeals board must be in compliance with Chapter 23, Title 1.

(C) The appeals board upon hearing the appeal may modify or reverse any decision rendered by the fire marshal in a case when, in the appeals board's opinion, the decision is unjust and is contrary to the purpose of the regulations promulgated by the fire commission or is contrary to the public interest.

(D) All appeals from a decision of the appeals board must be in accordance with Chapter 23, Title 1.

(E) Before a hearing is scheduled before the appeals board, the fire marshal or his designee shall contact the appellant to review and resolve the appeal informally, if possible, in a manner consistent with applicable regulations or law governing fire and life safety codes. This review must be scheduled within thirty days of the notice of appeal.

If a review is not resolved by mutual agreement, the fire marshal or his designee promptly shall issue a review decision within ten days stating the reason for the action taken. If the appellant does not accept the review decision by the fire marshal, he shall request a hearing before the appeals board within twenty days of receipt of the review decision, or the review decision is final and conclusive.

(F) The fire marshal or his designee may resolve code violations as specified in the 1988 Southern Standard Building Code and as outlined in Section 102.6, Alternate Material and Methods, and Section 101.5, Existing Conditions. Attempts to resolve appeals must include code and section interpretations from the Southern Building Code Congress or the National Fire Protection Associations, or both of them, as appropriate, of the individual case for evidence. Independent, competent cost analysis must be supplied by the appellant in a signed statement that details the equipment, materials, and labor necessary to achieve compliance with stated violations.

(G) Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to require an appellant to be represented by legal counsel during any phase of the appeals process.

(H) The State Fire Marshal Appeals Board must annually submit to the Budget and Control Board and each house of the General Assembly a list of those cases heard on appeal during the previous year, the actions taken on these cases, and a brief summary of these cases."

Appeal procedures; emergency decisions

SECTION 2. Section 23-9-150 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:

"Section 23-9-150. All buildings or structures referred to in Section 23-9-40, except single-family dwellings, duplexes, or one-story rooming houses, which are unsafe or not provided with adequate egress, or which constitute a fire hazard or are otherwise dangerous to human life, or which in relation to existing use constitute a hazard to safety or health by reason of inadequate maintenance, dilapidation, obsolescence, or abandonment are, severally in contemplation of this section, unsafe buildings. The use and occupancy of unsafe buildings is illegal, and the unsafe conditions must be corrected by repair, rehabilitation, or demolition in accordance with the following procedure:

(1) Whenever the State Fire Marshal finds a building, structure, or portion of a building or structure to be unsafe, as defined in this section, he shall give the owner, agent, or person in control of the building or structure written notice stating the defects found to exist. The notice must require the owner within a reasonable time as determined by the fire marshal to either complete specified repairs or improvements or to demolish and remove the building, structure, or unsafe portion of the building or structure.

If necessary, the notice also must require the building, structure, or portion of the building or structure to be vacated immediately and not reoccupied until the specified repairs and improvements are completed, inspected, and approved by the fire marshal.

(2) The fire marshal shall cause to be posted at each entrance to the building a notice as follows: 'THIS BUILDING IS UNSAFE AND ITS USE OR OCCUPANCY HAS BEEN PROHIBITED BY THE STATE FIRE MARSHAL.' The notice must remain posted until the required repairs are made or demolition is completed. It is unlawful for a person, firm, or corporation or its agents to remove the notice without written permission of the fire marshal, or for a person to enter the building except for the purpose of making the required repairs or demolishing the building.

(3) The owner, agent, or person in control of a building subject to repair may appeal as provided in Section 23-9-530. Emergency decisions of the fire marshal are not stayed pending appeal to the appeals board.

(4) If the owner, agent, or person in control of a property cannot be found within the stated time limit or, if the owner, agent, or person in control, after notice, fails, neglects, or refuses to comply with notice to repair, rehabilitate, demolish, or remove the building, structure, or portion of the building or structure, the fire marshal shall cause the building, structure, or portion of the building or structure to be vacated and secured."

Initial members; appointment and terms

SECTION 3. The members of the State Fire Marshal Appeals Board must be appointed within ninety days after this act's effective date, and their terms are as follows:

(1) registered architect, certified building inspector, and consumer: one year;

(2) member of the South Carolina State Fire Commission, general contractor, and registered electrical engineer: two years;

(3) specialty licensed contractor, building materials supplier, and structural engineer: three years.

Requirements before changes or penalties

SECTION 4. The 1976 Code is amended by adding:

"Section 23-9-155. The State Fire Marshal or any of his authorized agents, when inspecting buildings or structures for compliance with applicable provisions of law or fire codes and finding violations of the same, must inform the owner of the building or structure in writing of the nature of the violation and a specific citation as to the particular statutory provision of law or provision of the applicable fire code on which the violation is based before any changes in the building or structure may be required or before any penalties authorized by law may be assessed."

Time effective

SECTION 5. This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor.

Approved the 7th day of June, 1990.