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HomeMy WebLinkAboutREP PWIRC 020 05/01/2007 2006-2008 REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC WORKS AND INTERGOVERNMENTAL RELATIONS DATE: May 1, 2007 RE: Comm. 85-Bill 23 PLACE: Sheraton Keauhou Bay Resort TIME: 2:30 p.m. Council Chair and Members Hawaii County Council Hilo, Hawaii 96720 Your Committee on Public Works and Intergovernmental Relations, to which was referred Communication No. 85- Bi1123, reports as follows: Bi1123 was transmitted by Public Works Director Bruce McClure by Comm. No. 85, dated December 15, 2006. This matter had been postponed since February 6, 2007. Significant changes to the amendments to the Plumbing Code are as follows: 1. Format changes throughout to model format used by the City and County of Honolulu to improve the readability of the Code. 2. Permits shall not be required in the case of any replacement work for the following: replacement or repair of garbage disposals, faucet, and fixtures to include sinks, water closets, and heater for non-commercial occupancies only. 3. Permits will be required when such repairs do involve or require the replacement or rearrangement of valves or pipes. 4. All repairs or replacement work shall be done by a plumber licensed in the State of Hawaii. 5. There is no increase in plumbing permit fees. Council Member Bob Jacobson asked if State law required that a licensed plumber be used for construction and repair. Public Works Director McClure said that was correct. Council Member Jacobson said that he fixed his own plumbing and he thought that thousands of people fixed their own plumbing. Council Member Ford introduced a floor amendment via Comm. No. 85.2, which would amend Section 510.5, by changing the first sentence to read: [Ix} Due to seismic ['°r°~ activity in Hawaii County, all new water heaters shall be anchored or strapped to the floor and anchored or strapped on the top one third of the heater to a well anchored, structural wall, to resist horizontal displacement due to earthquake motion." Section 510.5, with its first sentence changed as noted above, would read in its entirety, as follows: "[l-n} Due to seismic activity in Hawaii County, all new water heaters shall be anchored or strapped to the floor and anchored or strapped on the top one third of the heater to a well anchored, structural wall, to resist horizontal displacement due to Earthquake motion. Strapping shall be at points within the upper one- third (1/3) and lower one-third (1/3) of its vertical dimensions. At the lower point, a minimum distance of four (4) inches (102 mm) shall be maintained above the controls with the strapping." Public Works Director McClure stated that this was covered in other parts of the code. Pete Hoffrnan asked where this was covered, that he can't follow where it was applied when he looked at the pages. Public Works Director McClure said the Uniform Plumbing Code is being followed, that the new 1997 code changed the formatting at the National level and that ramsayering was not the best way to mesh the two codes. Leslie Chow from the Legislative Reseazch Branch came forward and stated that she had reorganized the outline to make it easier to understand. She took Sections and divided them up. Page 5 shows the ramsayer changes to the code. Council Chair Pete Hoffmann said when he looked at page 16, that he still did not understand it. Leslie Chow continued, saying that the table of changes that accompanies the bill summarizes the changes. Council Member Pilago said that it appeazed that the staff at the Legislative Review Branch had not dovetailed the two parts in the ramsayered version. Public Works Director McClure stated that the core documents were different from the Uniform Building Code and that Lesley had tried to put it all together. Gary Nakao, the Kona Senior Plumbing Inspector said that the new code was in a different order. Public Works Director McClure advised the Council to adopt Bi1197, the Uniform Plumbing Code with some changes. Council Chair Hoffmann recommended that the Council vote on Bi1197 and move it forward to the Council with comments to be expected at the first reading. Council Member Ford offered to withdraw her amendment and Council Member Jacobson suggested that the Council pass it as it was and he called for the question. The floor amendment set forth by Comm. No. 85.2 passed unanimously. Leslie Chow asked that the Council include the two amendments from Comm. No. 85.1, which are stated here: 1. Section 17-17.1, that creates a temporary amnesty period, was inadvertently left out of this bill. As this section contains language similaz to that also placed in the Building, Electrical, and Plumbing Codes in 2006, we ask that the council amend Bill 23 to reinsert the language contained in section 17-17.1 into the bill, to be numbered and with section references amended as appropriate by the Legislative Research Branch. Section 17-17.1 reads as follows: "Section 17-17.1. Amnesty period. (a) For the period beginning October 1, 2006 through September 30, 2007, persons may apply for plumbing permits for residential building or farm structures completed before January 1, 2006 without proper plumbing permits. These special circumstance permits shall be called "amnesty permits." Only persons eligible to obtain a permit, pursuant to section 17-15, may apply for an amnesty permit. (b) Amnesty permit holders will be exempt from all civil and criminal penalties pursuant to section 17.9 that might otherwise be imposed for constructing a structure without a plumbing permit, if they otherwise comply with all applicable provisions of the County plumbing code, as well as the following listed conditions: (1) An application for a plumbing permit, that satisfies the requirements of the County plumbing code, shall be submitted within the amnesty period; and (2) The unpermitted construction shall be brought into full compliance with the requirements of the County plumbing code, and the permit closed in compliance with the code. (c) If these conditions are not being met, exemption from all civil and criminal penalties pursuant to sections 17-9, arising from the grant of an amnesty permit, shall lapse. (d) Any exemption from civil and criminal penalties granted pursuant to this section, arising from the grant of an amnesty permit, shall not relieve any person from the obligation to otherwise comply with all requirements of this code. (e) This section shall be repealed on October 1, 2007. All persons who have applied for and obtained an amnesty permit before the expiration of this section, shall be allowed to proceed pursuant to the terms of such permit, as long as they remain in full compliance with this section and the County plumbing code." 2. In section 17-47, relating to the Uniform Plumbing Code, due to formatting errors, paragraphs (110) through (130) should be renumbered (110) through (1331. Leslie Chow also stated that the Legislative Review Branch will do Draft 2. Both of the above amendments passed unanimously and the main motion for Bill 23 passes unanimously. Your Committee on Public Works and Intergovernmental Relations is in accord with the purpose and intent of Bi1123, with the floor amendment from Council Member Ford on the strapping of water heaters and the floor amendment from Leslie Chow and forwazds it to the Council with a positive recommendation. dh AYES NOES A&E EX Respectfully submitted, FORD x HIGH x COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC WORKS AND HOFFMANN x INTERGOVERNMENTAL RELATIONS IKEDA x JACOBSON x NAEOLE x BRENDA J. F RD, CHAIRPERSON PILAGO x PWIRC REPORT NO. 20 YAGONG x YOSHIMOTO x ADOPTED: MAY ~ F 2001