Bill Text: NJ A406 | 2020-2021 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Allows school district to develop delayed building evacuation plan to investigate source of fire alarm activation prior to evacuation.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 2-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-01-14 - Introduced, Referred to Assembly Education Committee [A406 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2020-A406-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
219th LEGISLATURE
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2020 SESSION
Sponsored by:
Assemblyman EDWARD H. THOMSON
District 30 (Monmouth and Ocean)
Assemblyman SEAN T. KEAN
District 30 (Monmouth and Ocean)
SYNOPSIS
Allows school district to develop delayed building evacuation plan to investigate source of fire alarm activation prior to evacuation.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel.
An Act concerning the evacuation of school buildings and supplementing chapter 41 of Title 18A of the New Jersey Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. a. Notwithstanding any law, rule or regulation to the contrary, the Director of the Division of Fire Safety in the Department of Community Affairs, in consultation with the Commissioner of Education, shall develop guidelines to allow school districts to develop plans for the delayed evacuation of school buildings that are equipped with an adequate level of fixed fire protection. The guidelines shall establish safety procedures, protocols, and a predetermined amount of time for trained, designated school building staff to investigate the source of fire alarm activation prior to evacuating the school building.
b. A school district which elects to develop a delayed evacuation plan pursuant to subsection a. of this section shall develop the plan in consultation with the local fire and law enforcement agencies.
In order to be eligible to develop a delayed evacuation plan, a school district shall, at a minimum, provide that:
(1) the school building is protected throughout by a complete automatic sprinkler system, or with a fire alarm having complete corridor smoke detection and point-addressable technology that displays the alarm location at the fire alarm control panel and at all annunciator panels; and
(2) the school building's fire alarm system utilizes a positive alarm sequencing that delays the notification appliance from activating, including horns and strobes, while trained personnel investigate the source of the fire alarm signal.
In developing a delayed evacuation plan, a school district may include a system of cameras throughout the school building that allows trained, designated school building staff to monitor the school building and more easily identify the source of the fire alarm activation.
c. A delayed evacuation plan developed by a school district shall be approved by the Director of the Division of Fire Safety prior to implementation. The director shall annually review and direct the school district to update as appropriate the delayed evacuation plan to verify that the minimum requirements established pursuant to this section and any rules promulgated pursuant to this section are met.
d. The Commissioner of the Department of Community Affairs, in consultation with the Commissioner of Education, shall promulgate rules pursuant to the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), to effectuate the provisions of this act.
2. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill allows school districts to develop plans for the delayed evacuation of school buildings that are equipped with an adequate level of fixed fire protection. Under the bill, the Director of the Division of Fire Safety in the Department of Community Affairs, in consultation with the Commissioner of Education, will develop guidelines for the plans, and a school district which elects to develop a delayed evacuation plan must develop the plan in consultation with the local fire and law enforcement agencies.
Under the bill, school districts will only be eligible to develop a delayed evacuation plan if:
· the school building is protected throughout by a complete automatic sprinkler system, or with a fire alarm having complete corridor smoke detection and point-addressable technology that displays the alarm location at the fire alarm control panel and at all annunciator panels; and
· the school building's fire alarm system utilizes a positive alarm sequencing that delays the notification appliance from activating, including horns and strobes, while trained personnel investigate the source of the fire alarm signal.
Under the bill, in developing a delayed evacuation plan, a school district may include a system of cameras throughout the school building that allows trained, designated school building staff to monitor the school building and more easily identify the source of the fire alarm activation.
A delayed evacuation plan developed by a school district must be approved by the Director of the Division of Fire Safety prior to implementation.
During several school shootings, including the school shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida on February 14, 2018, the shooter activated the school's fire alarm and waited for the students to leave their classrooms to have easier access to the students. This bill allows school districts to develop delayed evacuation plans to allow trained, designated staff members to investigate the causes of fire alarm activation prior to evacuating the school building.
