UNAPPROVED DRAFT BILL -- Subject to Change Without Notice!
BILL NO.
INTRODUCED BY
(Primary Sponsor)
A BILL FOR AN ACT ENTITLED: "AN ACT EXPANDING THE BUILDING CODES EDUCATION PROGRAM TO INCLUDE PLUMBING AND ELECTRICAL TOPICS; REQUIRING A PORTION OF PLUMBING AND ELECTRICAL PERMIT FEES TO BE USED TO PAY THE COSTS OF THE BUILDING CODES EDUCATION PROGRAM; AND AMENDING SECTIONS 50-60-106, 50-60-116, 50-60-508, AND 50-60-604, MCA."
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MONTANA:
Section 1. Section 50-60-106, MCA, is amended to read:
"50-60-106. Powers and duties of municipalities. (1) The examination, approval, or disapproval of plans and specifications, the issuance and revocation of building permits, licenses, certificates, and similar documents, the inspection of buildings, and the administration and enforcement of building regulations within the municipal jurisdictional area are the responsibility of the municipalities of the state.
(2) Each municipality or county certified under 50-60-302 shall, within its jurisdictional area:
(a) examine, approve, or disapprove plans and specifications for the construction of any building, the construction of which is pursuant or purports to be pursuant to the applicable provisions of the state or municipal building code, and direct the inspection of the buildings during and in the course of construction;
(b) require that construction of buildings be in accordance with the applicable provisions of the state or municipal building code, subject to the powers of variance or modification granted to the department;
(c) make available to building contractors at a price that is commensurate with reproduction costs a checklist devised by the department pursuant to 50-60-118 for single-family dwellings and provide to contractors who attach a completed checklist to the plans submitted for examination the relevant building permit or notice of plan disapproval within 10 working days of the contractor's submission;
(d) during and in the course of construction, order in writing the remedying of any condition found to exist in, on, or about any building that is being constructed in violation of the applicable state or municipal building code. Orders may be served upon the owner or the owner's authorized agent personally or by sending by certified mail a copy of the order to the owner or the owner's authorized agent at the address set forth in the application for permission for the construction of the building. A local building department, by action of an authorized officer, may grant in writing time, as may be reasonably necessary, for achieving compliance with the order. For the purposes of this subsection (2)(d), the phrase "during and in the course of construction" refers to the construction of a building until all necessary building permits have been obtained and the municipality or county has issued formal written approvals or has issued a certificate of occupancy for the building.
(e) issue certificates of occupancy as provided in 50-60-107;
(f) issue permits, licenses, and other required documents in connection with the construction of a building;
(g) ensure that all construction-related fees or charges imposed and collected by the municipality or county are necessary, reasonable, and uniform and are:
(i) except as provided in subsection (2)(g)(iii), used only for building code enforcement, which consists of those necessary and reasonable costs directly and specifically identifiable for the enforcement of building codes, plus indirect costs charged on the same basis as other local government proprietary funds not paying administrative charges as direct charges. If indirect costs are waived for any local government proprietary fund, they must also be waived for the program established in this section. Indirect charges are limited to the charges that are allowed under federal cost accounting principles that are applicable to a local government.
(ii) reduced if the amount of the fees or charges accumulates above the amount needed to enforce building codes for 12 months. The excess must be placed in a reserve account and may only be used for building code enforcement. Collection and expenditure of fees and charges must be fully documented.
(iii) allocated and remitted to the department, in an amount not to exceed 0.5% of the building permit, plumbing permit, and electrical permit fees or charges collected, for the building codes education program established in 50-60-116.
(3) Each municipality or county certified under 50-60-302 may, within its jurisdictional area:
(a) make, amend, and repeal rules for the administration and enforcement of the provisions of this section and for the collection of fees and charges related to construction;
(b) prohibit the commencement of construction until a permit has been issued by the local building department after a showing of compliance with the requirements of the applicable provisions of the state or municipal building code; and
(c) enter into a private contract with the owner or builder of a building that is not or will not be within the jurisdiction of the municipality or county under which the municipality or county will provide reviews, inspections, orders, and certificates of occupancy for a fee and under conditions agreed upon by the parties. Municipal or county powers of enforcement may not be exercised."
Section 2. Section 50-60-116, MCA, is amended to read:
"50-60-116. Continuing education -- funding support from building fees -- special account. (1) There is a building codes education program administered by the department for the purpose of providing continuing education in building code standards and other related topics, including plumbing and electrical topics, to interested persons in the construction industry and in regulatory agencies of state and local government.
(2) The building codes education program must be funded entirely from building fee, plumbing permit fee, and electrical permit fee revenue collected by the department, and the department shall allocate 0.5% of the fees that the department collects pursuant to 50-60-104, 50-60-508, 50-60-509, and 50-60-604 to the state special revenue account established in subsection (3) to pay the costs of conducting courses and seminars at multiple locations in the state.
(3) There is an account in the state special revenue fund for the purpose of paying the costs of the building codes education program.
(4) The department may expend the funds referred to in subsection (2) to contract with the cooperative extension service, the extended studies programs, other appropriate units of the Montana university system, or private sector entities to develop and conduct the building codes education program."
Section 3. Section 50-60-508, MCA, is amended to read:
"50-60-508. Permit fees. (1) The department of commerce shall establish permit fees in accordance with the Montana Administrative Procedure Act, and, except as provided in 50-60-116, the fees must be deposited to the state special revenue fund of the department for use in the administration and enforcement of this part and the Montana state plumbing code and for other purposes as established by law.
(2) For the purpose of 50-60-505 through 50-60-513, a sanitary plumbing outlet on or to which a plumbing fixture or appliance may be set or attached must be construed to be a fixture. Fees for reconnection and retest of plumbing systems in relocated buildings must be based on the number of plumbing fixtures, gas systems, water heaters, and the like involved. The fees established pursuant to this section must be commensurate with the costs of the administration and enforcement of this part and with appropriations for other purposes."
Section 4. Section 50-60-604, MCA, is amended to read:
"50-60-604. Inspections -- electrical permits -- fees. (1) (a) The department of commerce or an authorized representative or a municipality or county certified to perform an inspection pursuant to 50-60-302 shall inspect electrical installations, issue electrical permits for these installations, and establish and charge a reasonable and uniform fee for the inspections. The fee must be commensurate with the expense of providing the inspection and with appropriations for other purposes.
(b) Fees collected pursuant to this section are subject to the provisions of 50-60-116.
(2) As part of any inspection, the inspector shall require proof of licensure from any person who is required to be licensed who is involved with or, in the inspector's judgment, appears to be involved with electrical installations if the person is on the site. The inspector shall report any instance of license violation to the inspector's employing agency, and the employing agency shall in turn report the violation to the board of electricians."
- END -
Latest Version of LC 792 (LC0792.01)
Processed for the Web on December 14, 2000 (3:20PM)
New language in a bill appears underlined, deleted material appears stricken.
Sponsor names are handwritten on introduced bills, hence do not appear on the bill until it is reprinted. See the status of this bill for the bill's primary sponsor.
Status of this Bill | 2001
Legislature | Leg. Branch Home
This bill in WP 5.1 | All versions of all bills in WP 5.1
Authorized print version w/line numbers (PDF format)
(406)444-3064