Under present law, the commissioner of commerce and insurance, as the state fire marshal, must supervise and direct the activities of the fire prevention division through the director of the fire prevention division. This bill requires the state fire marshal to create a state fire permit ("permit") that a mobile food unit ("unit") may choose to annually obtain to demonstrate fire safety and electrical code compliance to local governments. A local government must recognize the permit in its jurisdiction and must not require a unit with a permit to hold a local fire permit or pass a local fire inspection.
The state fire marshal must issue a permit if a unit meets the following standards, as applicable:
(1) Cooking equipment that produces grease-laden vapors that may be a source of ignition of grease in the hood, grease removal device, or duct area protected with fire-extinguishing equipment in accordance with National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) 96, or portable fire extinguishers are selected and installed in kitchen areas and comply with the NFPA 10;
(2) The fire extinguishing systems, exhaust hoods, and exhaust systems have been regularly maintained at least every six months in accordance with NFPA 96;
(3) The exhaust system is not contaminated with deposits of grease-laden vapors exceeding the amount permitted by NFPA 96;
(4) Records for commercial kitchen hood cleanings are maintained in accordance with the International Fire Code;
(5) Solid fuel cooking appliances are protected by listed fire extinguishing equipment and comply with NFPA 96;
(6) All electrical appliances, equipment, and wiring comply with the National Electric Code; and
(7) The main shutoff valve of each gas container is readily accessible, so that no fire hazards or defects have developed after the initial inspection.
This bill authorizes the state fire marshal to charge a fee for the permit not to exceed the cost of inspecting the unit and issuing the permit and to inspect the unit twice per calendar year to ensure compliance with the standards above. The state fire marshal must provide written notice to the unit of code violations and order the unit to correct the violations within 30 days following the issuance of the written notice. If the code violations have not been corrected within the 30-day period, then the unit must discontinue service until the violations have been corrected. The state fire marshal may conduct additional inspections if necessary to address code violations, or an observation of unlawful conditions in violation of the standards above, and may charge the unit a fee not to exceed the cost of conducting such inspections. A unit failing to comply with such an order is subject to penalties. However, this bill also creates an appeal process for a unit to appeal to the commissioner and to the courts.
ON APRIL 21, 2023, THE HOUSE ADOPTED AMENDMENT #1 AND PASSED HOUSE BILL 814, AS AMENDED.
AMENDMENT #1 makes technical corrections to this bill.
ON APRIL 21, 2023, THE SENATE SUBSTITUTED HOUSE BILL 814 FOR SENATE BILL 907, ADOPTED AMENDMENTS #2 AND #3, AND PASSED HOUSE BILL 814, AS AMENDED.
AMENDMENT #2 makes two technical clarifications, caps the permit fee at a maximum of $300, reduces the frequency of inspections from twice a year to once a year, and specifies that (in addition to the state fire marshal) a local government that is exempt from statewide building construction standards based on enforcing its own construction and fire safety codes may inspect a mobile food unit to address code violations or an observation of unlawful conditions in violation of the fire and electrical standards in this bill.
AMENDMENT #3 revises the provision that provides that the state fire marshal may charge a fee for a permit not to exceed the lesser of the cost of inspecting the mobile food unit and issuing the permit or $300 to, instead, provide that the state fire marshal may charge a reasonable fee for a permit.