| 1 | The Committee on Insurance recommends the following: |
| 2 |
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| 3 | Committee Substitute |
| 4 | Remove the entire bill and insert: |
| 5 |
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| 6 | A bill to be entitled |
| 7 | An act relating to elevator safety; creating s. 399.025, |
| 8 | F.S.; providing for regional emergency elevator access; |
| 9 | requiring elevators in certain newly constructed or |
| 10 | substantially renovated buildings within a state emergency |
| 11 | response region to be operable in a fire emergency |
| 12 | situation through the use of a single master elevator key; |
| 13 | requiring compliance for certain existing buildings by a |
| 14 | specified date; restricting the duplication and issuance |
| 15 | of master elevator keys; authorizing local fire marshals |
| 16 | to allow substitute emergency measures for emergency |
| 17 | elevator access in certain circumstances; providing for |
| 18 | appeal of a local fire marshal's decision; providing for |
| 19 | enforcement by the Division of State Fire Marshal of the |
| 20 | Department of Financial Services; providing a penalty for |
| 21 | violation; providing for deposit of fines; providing an |
| 22 | exemption for specified buildings; providing rulemaking |
| 23 | authority of the Division of State Fire Marshal; amending |
| 24 | s. 399.03, F.S.; providing for waiver of a permit fee |
| 25 | under certain circumstances; creating s. 399.1061, F.S.; |
| 26 | reestablishing the Elevator Safety Technical Advisory |
| 27 | Committee within the Division of Hotels and Restaurants of |
| 28 | the Department of Business and Professional Regulation; |
| 29 | providing for membership of the committee; requiring the |
| 30 | committee to provide technical assistance to the division; |
| 31 | providing for terms of members; providing for per diem and |
| 32 | travel expenses; providing for the continuation of terms |
| 33 | of specified members of the committee; repealing s. |
| 34 | 399.106, F.S., relating to the Elevator Safety Technical |
| 35 | Advisory Committee, which terminated on December 31, 2003; |
| 36 | providing effective dates. |
| 37 |
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| 38 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 39 |
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| 40 | Section 1. Effective July 1, 2004, section 399.025, |
| 41 | Florida Statutes, is created to read: |
| 42 | 399.025 Regional emergency elevator access.-- |
| 43 | (1) In order to provide emergency access to elevators: |
| 44 | (a) For each building in this state which is six or more |
| 45 | stories in height, including, but not limited to, hotels and |
| 46 | condominiums, on which construction is begun after June 30, |
| 47 | 2004, all keys for elevators that allow public access, |
| 48 | including, but not limited to, service and freight elevators, |
| 49 | must be keyed in a manner that will allow all elevators within |
| 50 | each of the seven state emergency response regions to operate in |
| 51 | fire emergency situations by using one master elevator key. |
| 52 | (b) Any building in this state which is six or more |
| 53 | stories in height and is "substantially renovated" as defined in |
| 54 | the Americans with Disabilities Act, as amended, after June 30, |
| 55 | 2004, must also comply with the requirements of paragraph (a). |
| 56 | (2) Each existing building in this state which is six or |
| 57 | more stories in height must comply with the requirements of |
| 58 | subsection (1) before July 1, 2007. |
| 59 | (3) In addition to elevator owners, elevator owners' |
| 60 | agents, elevator contractors, state certified inspectors, and |
| 61 | State of Florida agency representatives, master elevator keys |
| 62 | may be issued only to fire departments and may not be issued to |
| 63 | any other emergency-response agency. A person may not duplicate |
| 64 | a master elevator key for issuance to, or issue a master |
| 65 | elevator key to, anyone other than authorized fire department |
| 66 | personnel. Each master elevator key must be marked "DO NOT |
| 67 | DUPLICATE." |
| 68 | (4) If it is technically or physically impossible to bring |
| 69 | a building into compliance with this section, the local fire |
| 70 | marshal may allow substitute emergency measures that will |
| 71 | provide reasonable emergency elevator access. The local fire |
| 72 | marshal's decision regarding substitute measures may be appealed |
| 73 | to the State Fire Marshal. |
| 74 | (5) The Division of State Fire Marshal of the Department |
| 75 | of Financial Services shall enforce this section. Any person |
| 76 | who fails to comply with the requirements of this section is |
| 77 | subject to an administrative fine of not greater than $1,000, in |
| 78 | addition to any other penalty provided by law. All |
| 79 | administrative fines shall be deposited into the Insurance |
| 80 | Regulatory Trust Fund. |
| 81 | (6) Builders should make every effort to use new |
| 82 | technology and developments in keying systems that make it |
| 83 | possible to convert existing equipment in a manner that will |
| 84 | provide efficient regional emergency elevator access. |
| 85 | (7) Any building operated by an independent special |
| 86 | district or an airport that has 24-hour emergency response |
| 87 | services is exempt from this section. |
| 88 | (8) The Division of State Fire Marshal shall adopt rules |
| 89 | to implement this section, including rules to determine the |
| 90 | master elevator key to be used within each of the emergency |
| 91 | response regions. |
| 92 | Section 2. Subsection (1) of section 399.03, Florida |
| 93 | Statutes, is amended to read: |
| 94 | 399.03 Design, installation, and alteration of |
| 95 | conveyances.-- |
| 96 | (1) A conveyance covered by this chapter may not be |
| 97 | erected, constructed, installed, or altered within buildings or |
| 98 | structures until a permit has been obtained from the department. |
| 99 | Permits must be applied for by a registered elevator company and |
| 100 | may only be granted upon receipt and approval of an application |
| 101 | to be made on a form prescribed by the department, accompanied |
| 102 | by proper fees and a sworn statement from an agent of the |
| 103 | registered elevator company that the plans meet all applicable |
| 104 | elevator safety and building codes. Permits may be granted only |
| 105 | to registered elevator companies in good standing. When any |
| 106 | material alteration is made, the alteration must conform to |
| 107 | applicable requirements of the Florida Building Code and the |
| 108 | provisions of this chapter. A copy of the permit and plans must |
| 109 | be kept at the construction site at all times while the work is |
| 110 | in progress and until a certificate of operation is issued. If |
| 111 | a permit is required to alter an elevator in order for the |
| 112 | elevator to comply with s. 399.025, the permit fee required by |
| 113 | the department shall be waived. |
| 114 | Section 3. Section 399.1061, Florida Statutes, is created |
| 115 | to read: |
| 116 | 399.1061 Elevator Safety Technical Advisory Committee.-- |
| 117 | (1) The Elevator Safety Technical Advisory Committee is |
| 118 | created within the Division of Hotels and Restaurants of the |
| 119 | Department of Business and Professional Regulation. The advisory |
| 120 | committee shall consist of eight members, to be appointed by the |
| 121 | Secretary of Business and Professional Regulation as follows: |
| 122 | one representative from a major elevator manufacturing company |
| 123 | or its authorized representative; one representative from an |
| 124 | elevator servicing company; one representative from the building |
| 125 | design profession; one representative of the general public; one |
| 126 | representative of a local government in this state; one |
| 127 | representative of building owners or managers; one |
| 128 | representative of labor involved in the installation, |
| 129 | maintenance, and repair of elevators; and one representative who |
| 130 | is a certified elevator inspector from a private inspection |
| 131 | service. The committee shall provide technical assistance to the |
| 132 | division in support of protecting the health, safety, and |
| 133 | welfare of the public and shall give the division the benefit of |
| 134 | the committee members' knowledge and experience concerning the |
| 135 | industries and individual businesses affected by the laws and |
| 136 | rules administered by the division. |
| 137 | (2) The committee members shall serve staggered terms of 4 |
| 138 | years to be set by rule. Members of the committee shall serve |
| 139 | without compensation, but are entitled to reimbursement for per |
| 140 | diem and travel expenses as provided in s. 112.061. The |
| 141 | committee shall appoint one of the members to serve as chair. |
| 142 | (3) The committee may consult with engineering authorities |
| 143 | and organizations concerned with standard safety codes for |
| 144 | recommendations to the department regarding rules governing the |
| 145 | operation, maintenance, servicing, construction, alteration, |
| 146 | installation, or inspection of vertical conveyances subject to |
| 147 | this chapter. |
| 148 | Section 4. Any member of the Elevator Safety Technical |
| 149 | Advisory Committee whose term of office was terminated on |
| 150 | December 31, 2003, as provided by s. 399.106, Florida Statutes, |
| 151 | but who had held the appointment for less than 4 years on that |
| 152 | date, shall be reappointed for the remainder of his or her 4- |
| 153 | year term. The Secretary of Business and Professional |
| 154 | Regulation shall appoint the other members of the committee to |
| 155 | staggered terms of office as provided by s. 399.1061, Florida |
| 156 | Statutes. |
| 157 | Section 5. Section 399.106, Florida Statutes, is repealed. |
| 158 | Section 6. Except as otherwise provided herein, this act |
| 159 | shall take effect upon becoming law. |