Bill Text: NJ A2139 | 2022-2023 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Prohibits certain light frame residential construction in densely populated census tracts; establishes construction requirements for certain light frame residential construction in other census tracts.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2022-02-07 - Introduced, Referred to Assembly Housing Committee [A2139 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2022-A2139-Introduced.html
Sponsored by:
Assemblywoman VERLINA REYNOLDS-JACKSON
District 15 (Hunterdon and Mercer)
Assemblyman BENJIE E. WIMBERLY
District 35 (Bergen and Passaic)
SYNOPSIS
Prohibits certain light frame residential construction in densely populated census tracts; establishes construction requirements for certain light frame residential construction in other census tracts.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act establishing restrictions on certain light frame residential construction and supplementing P.L.1975, c.217 (C.52:27D-119 et seq.).
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. a. (1) In a census tract with a population density of at least 5,000 persons per square mile, according to the latest federal decennial census and adding the persons to be counted pursuant to paragraph (3) of this subsection, a residential group R-2 structure shall not be constructed using light frame wood construction.
(2) In a census tract with a population density of less than 5,000 persons per square mile, according to the latest federal decennial census and adding the persons to be counted pursuant to paragraph (3) of this subsection, a residential group R-2 structure may only be constructed using light frame wood construction subject to the following requirements:
(a) the structure shall be a detached structure that does not exceed 7,000 square feet in area per story;
(b) the structure shall not have more than three stories, including any floor with habitable space, and shall not exceed 40 feet in height, measured from grade plane;
(c) the structure shall have a minimum fire separation distance of 30 feet; and
(d) an automatic sprinkler system shall be installed throughout the structure in accordance with the requirements of National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) 13, Standard for the Installation of Sprinkler Systems.
(3) For the purposes of determining the population density of a census tract under this subsection, each bedroom or room used for sleeping of each dwelling unit or sleeping unit of a proposed residential group R-2 structure in a census tract and any residential group R-2 structure constructed in that census tract on or after the effective date of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill) shall be counted as one and one-half persons.
b. An enforcing agency shall not allow construction of a residential group R-2 structure using light frame wood construction to proceed unless a fire watch guard is present at the construction site 24 hours a day, seven days a week, for the duration of the construction project and for 48 hours following the issuance of a certificate of occupancy, to monitor the construction project and to immediately alert the 911 emergency telephone service if a fire or other emergency occurs.
(1) An applicant is eligible to be a fire watch guard if the applicant has qualified pursuant to N.J.S.40A:14-9 and is an active or retired firefighter, or is a fire inspector who is certified pursuant to subsection c. of section 12 of P.L.1983, c.383 (C.52:27D-203).
(2) The owner or agent of a construction project subject to monitoring pursuant to this subsection shall submit an application to the enforcing agency for authorization of an individual to serve as a fire watch guard. The application shall include the individual's name, address, date of birth, social security number, fingerprints, and written consent for a criminal history record background check to be performed, and a copy of a government identification issued to the individual. The enforcing agency shall exchange fingerprint data with and receive criminal history record information from the State Bureau of Identification in the Division of State Police in the Department of Law and Public Safety and the Federal Bureau of Investigation consistent with applicable State and federal laws, rules, and regulations.
(3) A fire watch guard monitoring a construction project pursuant to this subsection shall perform constant patrols to watch for the occurrence of a fire or other emergency and make regular inspections of the construction project, for the entire construction site or, if more than one fire watch guard is assigned, for the areas of the construction site assigned to the fire watch guard for monitoring by the owner or agent of the construction project. A fire watch guard shall also ensure that all requirements of the code are followed with respect to any hot work on the construction site. A fire watch guard shall have a means for notification of the 911 emergency telephone service, provided by the owner or agent of the construction project, while monitoring the construction project.
A fire watch guard shall maintain a record of all time periods of duty, including a log entry each time the site was patrolled and each time a residential group R-2 structure under construction was inspected. The records shall include any fire safety issue identified. The records shall be submitted to the enforcing agency on a weekly basis and the enforcing agency may take action appropriate to abate any fire safety threats, including, but not limited to, revoking the construction permit for the project.
A fire watch guard shall not be provided any duty in addition to those set forth in this subsection.
(4) The owner or agent of a construction project subject to monitoring pursuant to this subsection shall be responsible for hiring and compensating a fire watch guard.
(5) The enforcing agency may assess the owner reasonable administrative fees incurred by the enforcing agency in performing its duties as set forth in this subsection.
c. (1) The owner or agent of a residential group R-2 structure is under a duty to determine whether the structure is of light frame wood construction.
(2) An owner or agent of a residential group R-2 structure of light frame wood construction shall provide written notice to current and prospective lessors or purchasers of dwelling units or sleeping units in the structure containing information about the fire safety limitations of light frame wood construction as required by the commissioner. The notice shall be included, in a prominent manner, in each contractual agreement for a lease or purchase of a dwelling unit or sleeping unit in the structure.
d. The commissioner, pursuant to the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), shall adopt regulations necessary to effectuate the provisions of this section, and may adopt a light frame wood construction subcode or propose amendments to revise the appropriate model code adopted pursuant to section 5 of P.L.1975, c.217 (C.52:27D-123), for the purpose of establishing adequate and appropriate standards for residential group R-2 structures constructed using light frame wood construction.
e. As used in this section:
"Agent" means a person who shall have charge, care, or control of any building, structure, or real property as owner, or agent of the owner, or as executor, executrix, administrator, administratrix, trustee, or guardian of the estate of the owner.
"Dwelling unit" means a single unit providing complete, independent living facilities for one or more persons living as a single housekeeping unit, including permanent provisions for living, sleeping, eating, cooking, and sanitation.
"Fire separation distance" means the distance measured from the building face to one of the following: (1) the closest interior lot line; (2) the centerline of a street, an alley, or public way; (3) to an imaginary line between two buildings on the lot. The distance shall be measured at right angles from the face of the wall.
"Light frame wood construction" means a type or construction whose vertical and horizontal structural elements are primarily formed by a system of repetitive wood framing members.
"Owner" means the owner or owners in fee of the property or a lesser estate therein, a mortgagee or vendee in possession, an assignee of rents, receiver, executor, trustee, lessee, or any other person, firm, or corporation, directly or indirectly in control of a building, structure, or real property, and shall include any subdivision thereof of the State.
"Residential group R-2 structure" means an occupancy containing sleeping units or more than two dwelling units where the occupants are primarily permanent.
"Sleeping unit" means a room or space in which people sleep, which can also include permanent provisions for living, eating, and either sanitation or kitchen facilities but not both, but does not include such a room or space that is also part of a dwelling unit.
2. This act shall take
effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill would prohibit the use of light frame wood construction for residential group R-2 structures, including apartments, hotels, and dormitories, in census tracts with a population density of 5,000 or more persons per square mile, and would establish new construction standards for light frame wood construction for these structures in all other census tracts. This bill is in response to the numerous massive fires that have occurred in multiple unit residential structures of light frame wood construction, while occupied and under construction. The extreme speed with which light frame wood construction can reach its failure point when exposed to fire has led to devastating results for residents and first responders. This bill would address the risk of this type of construction by eliminating it from densely populated areas where the risk of fires spreading to other structures is too great, and would strengthen construction requirements where this construction is permitted to reduce the risk of massive fires, for the protection of residents, public safety personnel, and property.
In census tracts with a population density of less than 5,000 persons per square mile, a residential group R-2 structure may be constructed using light frame wood construction only if: (1) the structure is a detached structure that does not exceed 7,000 square feet in area per story; (2) the structure has no more than three stories and does not exceed 40 feet in height; (3) the structure has a minimum fire separation distance of 30 feet; and (4) an automatic sprinkler system is installed throughout the structure, in accordance with National Fire Protection Association 13. Limiting the size of these structures is of critical importance to the goals of this legislation. The bill's size limitations and fire separation distance requirements would forbid the current practices of (1) stacking "separate" structures, to gain greater height, and (2) separating interior "buildings" by ineffective core board fire assemblies, to gain greater area. The result of these unsafe practices is the formation of much larger, highly combustible detached structures that exceed the construction code size restrictions that would otherwise apply. Indeed, these practices have led to the construction of very large light frame wood construction residential structures, sometimes the size of a city block or more, which have been destroyed by quickly spreading fires, putting lives and property at serious risk.
In addition, this bill would require that residential group R-2 structure light frame wood construction projects be monitored by fire watch guards 24 hours a day, seven days a week. A fire watch guard would have to be present from the time construction begins until 48 hours after the issuance of a certificate of occupancy. The primary responsibility of a fire watch guard would be to watch for the occurrence of a fire or other emergency. In the event of a fire or other emergency, a fire watch guard would have to immediately alert the 911 emergency telephone service. A fire watch guard would also be responsible for ensuring that all construction code requirements are followed with respect to any hot work on the construction site. A fire watch guard would also have to report fire safety issues to the municipal construction code official, who may revoke construction permits for projects posing fire safety risks. The municipality may assess owners of residential group R-2 structure construction projects using light frame wood construction reasonable fees to cover the costs incurred by a municipality for carrying out its responsibilities pursuant to this bill.
The bill would also require an owner or agent of a residential group R-2 structure of light frame wood construction, including existing structures, to provide written notice to current and prospective lessors or purchasers of dwelling or sleeping units in the structure of the fire safety limitations of light frame wood construction.
