SENATE AMENDED

THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA

HOUSE BILL

INTRODUCED BY BOYD, BENNINGHOFF, PHILLIPS, BAKER, BEAR, CALTAGIRONE, CARROLL, CUTLER, EVERETT, FABRIZIO, GEORGE, GERGELY, GIBBONS, GOODMAN, GRUCELA, HALUSKA, HORNAMAN, HUTCHINSON, KORTZ, MILLARD, MOUL, MUSTIO, PICKETT, RAPP, READSHAW, REICHLEY, ROCK, ROHRER, SIPTROTH, DALEY, OBERLANDER, GINGRICH, CAUSER AND STERN, APRIL 3, 2009

SENATOR CORMAN, APPROPRIATIONS, IN SENATE, RE-REPORTED AS AMENDED, OCTOBER 13, 2010   

AN ACT

Amending the act of November 10, 1999 (P.L.491, No.45), entitled

"An act establishing a uniform construction code; imposing

powers and duties on municipalities and the Department of

Labor and Industry; providing for enforcement; imposing

penalties; and making repeals," further providing for

definitions, and for administration and enforcement and for

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exemptions; and providing for applicability.

The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

hereby enacts as follows:

Section 1.  The definition of "board of appeals" in section

103 of the act of November 10, 1999 (P.L.491, No.45), known as

the Pennsylvania Construction Code Act, is amended to read:

Section 103.  Definitions.

The following words and phrases when used in this act shall

have the meanings given to them in this section unless the

context clearly indicates otherwise:

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"Board of appeals."  The body created by a municipality or

more than one municipality to consider variance requests, to

consider extensions of time and to hear appeals from decisions

of the code administrator [as provided for by Chapter 1 of the

1999 Building Officials and Code Administrators International,

Inc., National Building Code, Fourteenth Edition].

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Section 2.  Section 501(c)(1) and (2) of the act, amended

November 29, 2006 (P.L.1440, No.157), are amended and the

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subsection is amended by adding a paragraph to read:

Section 501.  Administration and enforcement.

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(c)  Board of appeals.--

(1)  A municipality which has adopted an ordinance for

the administration and enforcement of this act or

municipalities which are parties to an agreement for the

joint administration and enforcement of this act shall

establish a board of appeals [as provided by Chapter 1 of the

1999 BOCA National Building Code, Fourteenth Edition, to hear

appeals from decisions of the code administrator]. Members of

the municipality's governing body may not serve as members of

the board of appeals.

(2)  [An application for appeal shall be based on a claim

that the true intent of this act or regulations legally

adopted under this act have been incorrectly interpreted, the

provisions of this act do not fully apply or an equivalent

form of construction is to be used.] A board of appeals shall

consider variance requests, requests for extensions of time

and appeals of decisions of code administrators based on any

of the following criteria:

(i)  The decision contravenes the true intent of the

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act.

(ii) (i)  The Uniform Construction Code was

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incorrectly interpreted by the code administrator.

(iii) (ii)  The Uniform Construction Code does not

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apply to the subject of the decision.

(iv)  The requirements of the Uniform Construction

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Code impose an impracticable or unreasonable burden for

which an exemption that poses no safety hazard should be

granted from the Uniform Construction Code. This

subparagraph does not authorize the board of appeals to

grant an exemption from automatic fire sprinkler system

requirements of the Uniform Construction Code.

(v) (iii)  An equivalent form of construction can be

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used for the subject of the decision.

(vi)  The Uniform Construction Code imposes a

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requirement which violates the basic tenets of a

recognized religious sect for which an exemption that

poses no public safety hazard should be granted from the

Uniform Construction Code.

(vii)  Compensatory features that will provide an

equivalent degree of protection to the Uniform

Construction Code.

(viii)  The availability of professional or technical

personnel needed to come into compliance.

(ix)  The availability of materials and equipment

needed to come into compliance.

(x)  The efforts being made to come into compliance

as quickly as possible.

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(6)  A decision of a code administrator must contain

written notification that the decision can be appealed to the

municipality's board of appeals. The written notification

must state the basis for an appeal under paragraph (2) and

the time frames under paragraph (5), and must provide

specific information on where and how to file the appeal in

that municipality.

* * *

Section 3.  Section 901(a) of the act, amended July 7, 2006

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(P.L.1052, No.108), is amended and the section is amended by

adding a subsection subsections to read:

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Section 901.  Exemptions.

(a)  Manufactured housing.--This act shall not apply to

manufactured housing which bears a label, as required by and

referred to in the act of November 17, 1982 (P.L.676, No.192),

known as the Manufactured Housing Construction and Safety

Standards Authorization Act, which certifies that it conforms to

Federal construction and safety standards adopted under the

Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 (Public Law

93-383, 88 Stat. 633), nor shall it apply to industrialized

housing, as defined in the act of May 11, 1972 (P.L.286, No.70),

known as the Industrialized Housing Act, with the exception that

any model code enacted pursuant to the Industrialized Housing

Act shall also have been adopted pursuant to this act and that

any model code enacted pursuant to the Industrialized Housing

Act shall not include code provisions specifically omitted from

adoption pursuant to this act.

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(f)  Log walls.--Log walls with a minimum average wall

thickness of five inches or greater which comply with the

International Code Council Standard on the Design and

Construction of Log Structures, ICC 400-2007, or other successor

standard which the department may specify by regulation, shall

be permitted in residential buildings if:

(1)  the area weighted average U-factor for fenestration

products in the log walls is a maximum of 0.31; and

(2)  (i)  the building heating equipment meets or exceeds

the following Department of Energy ratings:

(A)  Gas furnace - 90 annual fuel utilization

efficiency (AFUE).

(B)  Oil furnace - 85 annual fuel utilization

efficiency (AFUE).

(C)  Boilers - 85 annual fuel utilization

efficiency (AFUE).

(D)  Air source heat pumps - 8.2 heating seasonal

performance factor (HSPF) split systems.

(E)  For water-to-air geothermal heat pumps:

(I)  Closed loop water-to-air, an energy

efficiency rating of 14.1 and coefficient of

performance of 3.3.

(II)  Open loop water-to-air, an energy

efficiency rating of 16.2 and coefficient of

performance of 3.6.

(F)  For water-to-water geothermal heat pumps:

(I)  Closed loop water-to-water, an energy

efficiency rating of 15.1 and coefficient of

performance of 3.0.

(II)  Open loop water-to-water, an energy

efficiency rating of 19.1 and coefficient of

performance of 3.4.

(G)  For direct geothermal exchange, an energy

efficiency rating of 15.0 and coefficient of

performance of 3.5;

or

(ii)  the building heating equipment is qualified

under the Energy Star program jointly operated by the

Department of Energy and the United States Environmental

Protection Agency as provided for in 10 CFR Pt. 430

(relating to energy conservation program for consumer

products); and

(iii)  all energy efficiency requirements of this act

applicable to components other than log walls are met.

(g)  Automatic fire sprinkler systems in one-family and two-

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family dwellings.--

(1)  Section R313.2 (relating to automatic fire sprinkler

systems in one- and two-family dwellings) of the

International Residential Code (2009 edition), and any

successor triennial revisions, is excluded from this act and

shall not be part of Chapter 3.

(2)  A builder of a one-family or two-family dwelling

subject to the International Residential Code shall, at or

before the time of entering into the purchase contract, do

all of the following:

(i)  Offer to a buyer the option to install or equip,

at the buyer's expense, an automatic fire sprinkler

system in the building or dwelling unit designed and

installed in accordance with the provisions of section

R313.2.1 (relating to design and installation of

automatic fire sprinkler systems) of the International

Residential Code (2009 edition).

(ii)  Provide the buyer with information which

explains the initial and ongoing cost of installing and

equipping an automatic fire sprinkler system in the

building or dwelling unit.

(3)  This subsection shall expire December 15, 2011.

Section 3 4.  The amendment of section 501(c)(1) and (2) of

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the act shall apply to appeals filed on or after the effective

date of this section.

Section 5.  The addition of section 901(f) of the act shall

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expire December 31, 2012.

Section 4 6.  This act shall take effect in 60 days.

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Section 6.  This act shall take effect as follows:

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(1)  The following provisions shall take effect

immediately:

(i)  The addition of section 901(g) of the act.

(ii)  This section.

(2)  The remainder of this act shall take effect in 60

days.