CITY OF SEATTLE

ORDINANCE __________________

COUNCIL BILL __________________

AN ORDINANCE relating to the Seattle Fire Department’s fire prevention services; amending Sections 22.602.010, 22.602.020, 22.602.045, 22.602.050, 22.602.070, 22.602.090, and 3.102.010 of, repealing Sections 3.16.130 and 22.600.050 of, and adding a new Section 3.16.131 to the Seattle Municipal Code.

WHEREAS, the Seattle Fire Code, Subtitle VI of Seattle Municipal Code Title 22, establishes standards intended to preserve lives and protect property; and

WHEREAS, Seattle Fire Department (“SFD”) Administrative Rules provided additional provisions related to administering the Seattle Fire Code; and

WHEREAS, The City of Seattle adopted a new Seattle Fire Code during 2021; and

WHEREAS, certain administrative provisions in the Seattle Municipal Code require modification as a result of action taken in Ordinance 125948 or to harmonize the Code and existing practices; and

WHEREAS, changes to the Seattle Fire Code and SFD Administrative Rules can also require the introduction, modification, or elimination of Seattle Fire Department permits and services, to ensure consistency between the permit, certification, and inspection structure and Seattle Fire Code regulations; NOW, THEREFORE,

BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY OF SEATTLE AS FOLLOWS:

Section 1. Section 22.600.050 of the Seattle Municipal Code, enacted by Ordinance 119124, is repealed:

(( 22.600.050 Examinations-Duration.

Certificates indicating successful completion of an examination shall be valid for a period of three (3) years from the date of examination. ))

Section 2. Section 22.602.010 of the Seattle Municipal Code, last amended by Ordinance 125707, is amended as follows:

22.602.010 Title and purpose

A. Title. This Chapter 22.602 shall be known as the "Fire Code Permit and Fee Ordinance."

B. Purpose. It is the purpose of this Subtitle VI to prescribe fees in accordance with the regulatory authority vested in the Seattle Fire Department and for services provided, as follows:

1. Fees for permits including, but not limited to, permits to store, handle, or use hazardous materials or conduct hazardous processes;

2. Fees for (( second )) initial and subsequent acceptance tests of fire protection equipment, systems , or devices as required by the Seattle Fire Code;

3. Fees for inspections or plan review by the Fire Prevention Division of the Seattle Fire Department, outside regular business hours;

4. Fees for the examination and/or review of plans and land use actions ;

5. Fees for filing of code alternates/variances resulting from other than plan review;

6. Fees for the administration of examinations and certificates issued as prescribed in the Seattle Fire Code;

7. Fees for subsequent inspections by the Fire Prevention Division of the Seattle Fire Department required to gain compliance with Seattle Fire Code requirements;

8. Fees for training provided by the Seattle Fire Department; and

9. Fees for filing testing documentation for fire protection systems and emergency responder radio coverage systems.

Section 3. Section 22.602.020 of the Seattle Municipal Code, last amended by Ordinance 115636, is amended as follows:

22.602.020 Payment of fees(( . ))

A. Fees shall be paid at the time of application for permit, certification, examination , or inspection , and at the time of filing of testing documentation .

B. Fees (( which )) that are invoiced by the Seattle Fire Department shall be paid within (( thirty (30) )) 30 days of invoice issuance.

C. Failure to pay fees stipulated in this (( chapter )) Chapter 22.602 is a violation of the Seattle Fire Code.

Section 4. Section 22.602.045 of the Seattle Municipal Code, last amended by Ordinance 125707, is amended as follows:

^{22.602.045 Fees}

^{A. The fees for the following non-hazardous material permits are established in Schedule A. See Table A for 22.602.045.}

^{Non-Hazardous Materials Permit Fees}

^{Effective (( January 1, 2019 )) March 1, 2022}

^{* * *}

^{B. The fees for the following special event permits are established in Schedule B. See Table B for 22.602.045.}

^{Special Events Permit Fees}

^{Effective (( January 1, 2019 )) March 1, 2022}

^{C. The fees for the following special hazards permits are established in Schedule C. See Table C for 22.602.045.}

^{Special Hazards Permits}

^{Fees for special hazards permits are established in Schedule C (See Table C for 22.602.045). In some cases these fees are based on the quantity of hazardous material stored and/or handled at the site and the relative risk posed by each material.}

^{1. Definitions:}

^{a. “Quantity Range Number,” as established in the Quantity Range Table below, is a number between 1 and 2 that is assigned to a hazard category based upon the amount of hazardous material located at the site.}

^{QUANTITY RANGE TABLE}

^{b. “Assigned Risk Factor,” as established below, is a number between 1 and 1.5 assigned to each hazard class and category of hazardous material indicating the relative hazard posed by materials in that hazard category and the potential nature of controls required by the Fire Code.}

^{c. “Fixed permit cost” is the minimum cost for the Seattle Fire Department to issue a hazardous material permit. The fixed permit cost is $288.}

^{d. “Base permit fee” is determined by multiplying the sum of the products of the quantity range number and assigned risk factor for each hazard class by the fixed permit cost and is represented by the following equation:}

^{Base permit fee = [S (Q₁})(R1) + (Q2)(R2) . . .] [F]

^_Where:  

^{_{Q = The quantity range number.}}

  ^{_{R = The assigned risk factor.}}

  ^{_{F = The fixed permit cost of $288.}}

^{_{When an individual material has multiple hazards, only the hazard presented by the hazard class that has been assigned the highest risk factor shall be considered in the fee calculation.}}

^_Example:

^{_{XYZ Company stores 50 gallons of gasoline and 200 gallons of 50% nitric acid. Gasoline is classified as a Class I flammable liquid , which has an assigned risk factor of 1.4. Nitric acid (50%) is classified as both a corrosive liquid and a Class 2 oxidizer. Because 50% nitric acid presents two separate hazards (corrosive and Class 2 oxidizer) only the Class 2 oxidizer hazard is considered in the fee calculation because it has an assigned risk factor of 1.2 compared to the 1.1 risk factor assigned to corrosives.}}

^{_{Base permit fee = [(1)(1.4)flammable}} + (1.25)(1.2)Class 2 oxidizer] $288.

^{_{Base permit fee = $835.20.}}

^{_{Special Hazards Permit Fees}}

^{_{Effective (( January 1, 2019 )) March 1, 2022}}

^{_{* * *}}

  ^{_{L. Fees for certification examinations are established in Schedule L. Each examination fee listed under Schedule L includes one test and one opportunity to retake the test under the following “re-test” conditions: the person taking the examination does not pass the examination the first time and the “re-test” occurs within 90 calendar days of the original test. Upon successfully passing a certification examination, and upon providing evidence of current State of Washington certification if required by State law for that certification type, the person who took the test will be certified by The City of Seattle for that certification type for one year. The certification may be renewed for two subsequent years at no cost to the licensee. The licensee will, however, need to demonstrate continued competence and continue to comply with State regulations where applicable as a condition of certification renewal. The renewal of the license will be denied if the Seattle Fire Department becomes informed and verifies that the licensee no longer meets the qualifications for the license. Testing is required once every three years.}}

^{_{Schedule L}}

^{_{Section 5. Section 22.602.050 of the Seattle Municipal Code, last amended by Ordinance 125707, is amended as follows:}}

^{_{22.602.050 Fees for certain inspections}}

^{_{* * *}}

^{_{B. Whenever the Fire Prevention Division is requested to perform an inspection as required by the Fire Code and the responsible party fails to appear within 20 minutes from the original appointment time and does not cancel the appointment by (( fax or )) email by 9(( :00 )) a.m. the business day prior to the inspection, or fails to have the required personnel and/or equipment prepared and available to conduct the test, the Fire Chief or the Fire Chief's designee shall collect and the responsible party shall pay a fee for such staff time and preparation required to meet the inspection appointment. Such fees shall be based on actual labor costs including any applicable administrative overhead with a one-hour minimum.}}

^{_{* * *}}

  ^{_{Section 6. Section 22.602.070 of the Seattle Municipal Code, last amended by Ordinance 125707, is amended as follows:}}

^{_{22.602.070 Fees for Fire Department plan review and inspection of fire protection systems in new or existing buildings undergoing construction, reconstruction, remodeling, or renovation}}

^{_{A. The responsible party shall pay a fee for the Fire Prevention Division to examine and review land use actions, examine and review architectural and system plans , and inspect fire protection systems in new or existing buildings undergoing construction, reconstruction, remodeling, or renovation.}}

^{_{B. The fee for such (( plan )) examination or review shall be (( $282 per hour with a one-hour minimum )) $282 plus $282 per hour for each hour exceeding one, effective (( January 1, 2019 )) March 1, 2022 .}}

^{_{C. The fee for inspection of fire protection systems in new or existing buildings undergoing construction, reconstruction, remodeling, or renovation shall be as follows:}}

_{^{Construction-Related Inspection Fees a}}

(( a Includes acceptance testing and reacceptance testing. ))

_{^{(( b ))a Where a time charge is indicated, a fee shall be charged equal to actual labor costs plus administrative overhead costs for field inspection and/or review exceeding one hour.}}

_{^{b Fee includes initial inspection plus subsequent inspection visits with no additional charge until the costs of providing the service exceed the amount paid, in which case further inspections may be billed using the time charge.}}

_{^{c Includes an inspection and one reinspection for a specific project and location.}}

^{_{* * *}}

^{_{Section 7. Section 22.602.090 of the Seattle Municipal Code, last amended by Ordinance 126283, is amended as follows:}}

^{_{22.602.090 Fees for filing testing documentation for fire protection systems and emergency responder radio coverage systems}}

^{_{A. The Fire Chief or the Fire Chief’s designee shall collect a $30 fee for processing documentation (( pertaining to testing of fire protection systems and emergency responder radio coverage systems in accordance with Administrative Rule 9.02, “Inspection, Testing, Maintenance and Reporting Requirements for Fire Protection Systems and Emergency Responder Radio Amplification Systems,” and Administrative Rule 9.04, “Impaired Fire Protection Systems and Emergency Responder Radio Amplification Systems,” )) of acceptance testing and recurring inspections, testing, and maintenance as required by (( Seattle Fire Code Section 901.6.1, Standards; Section 901.6.2, Records; Section 901.6.3, Records; and Section 510.6.1, “Testing and Proof of Compliance.” )) Administrative Rule 9.02 “Inspection, Testing, Maintenance, and Reporting Requirements for Fire Protection Systems and Emergency Responder Radio Amplification Systems”.}}

^{_{B. Those test reports that are submitted more than 13 days past the time limitations specified in Administrative Rule 9.02(( , “Inspection, Testing, Maintenance and Reporting Requirements for Fire Protection Systems and Emergency Responder Radio Amplification Systems,” )) shall be subject to a $10 per test report late fee.}}

^{_{C. Test filing fees and late fees shall be payable by the person responsible for performing the systems testing. For purposes of this Section 22.602.090, person has the same meaning as defined in the Seattle Fire Code as constituted pursuant to Section 22.600.020.}}

^{_{D. The Fire Chief shall have the authority to enter into a contract with a third party vendor for purposes of collecting, organizing, categorizing , and tracking compliance with Administrative Rules 9.01, 9.02, and 9.04, and for collecting the fees imposed by this Section 22.602.090. The third-party vendor shall be entitled to retain that portion of the fees that represents compensation for the vendor’s services in accordance with the terms of the contract, and shall remit the remainder to the Department.}}

^{_{Section 8. Section 3.102.010 of the Seattle Municipal Code, last amended by Ordinance 124919, is amended as follows:}}

^{_{3.102.010 Designated(( . ))}}

^{_{Except as permitted by Section 3.06.015 for the Applicant Services Center of the Seattle Department of Construction and Inspections and Section 3.16.131 for the Fire Marshal’s Office of the Seattle Fire Department , all city offices shall open for transaction of business from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. of each day from Monday through Friday, except on days designated as holidays by RCW 1.16.050.}}

^{_{Section 9. Section 3.16.130 of the Seattle Municipal Code, enacted by Ordinance 99481, is repealed:}}

^{_{(( 3.16.130 Fees for reports and tests.}}

^{_{The Fire Department shall, under the direction of the Fire Chief, collect fees for certain reports and test services furnished by the Department as follows:}}

^{_{Provided, governmental agencies shall be exempt from such fees. ))}}

^{_{Section 10. A new Section 3.16.131 of the Seattle Municipal Code is added to Subchapter III of Chapter 3.16 as follows:}}

^{_{3.16.131 Fire Marshal’s Office business hours}}

^{_{The Fire Prevention Division, also known as the Fire Marshal’s Office, shall open for transaction of business from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. of each day from Monday through Friday, except on days designated as holidays by RCW 1.16.050 or during periods when an emergency order provides other direction for public counters. Business may be transacted by phone, email, online services, field inspections when pre-scheduled, or in person at the walk-in service counter.}}

^{_{Section 11. The provisions of this ordinance are declared to be separate and severable. The invalidity of any clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivision, section, or portion of this ordinance, or the invalidity of its application to any person or circumstance, does not affect the validity of the remainder of this ordinance or the validity of its application to other persons or circumstances.}}

^{_{Section 12. Sections 2, 4, 6, and 7 of this ordinance shall take effect on March 1, 2022.}}

^{_{Section 13. This ordinance shall take effect and be in force 30 days after its approval by the Mayor, but if not approved and returned by the Mayor within ten days after presentation, it shall take effect as provided by Seattle Municipal Code Section 1.04.020.}}

^{_{Passed by the City Council the ________ day of _________________________, 2022, and signed by me in open session in authentication of its passage this _____ day of _________________________, 2022.}}

^{_{____________________________________}}

^{_{President ____________ of the City Council}}

^{_{Approved by me this ________ day of _________________________, 2022.}}

^{_{____________________________________}}

^{_{Bruce Harrell, Mayor}}

^{_{Filed by me this ________ day of _________________________, 2022.}}

^{_{____________________________________}}

^{_{Monica Martinez Simmons, City Clerk}}

^_(Seal)