Amend HB 3540 by adding the following appropriately numbered
ARTICLE to the bill and renumbering subsequent ARTICLES to the bill
accordingly:
ARTICLE . LINCENSURE OF RESIDENTIAL FIRE ALARM TECHNICIANS
SECTION__.01. Section 2, Article 5.43-2, Insurance Code, is
amended by amending Subdivision (8) and adding Subdivision (17) to
read as follows:
(8) "Monitoring" means the receipt of fire alarm and
supervisory signals [and retransmission] or communication of those
signals to a fire service communications center that is located in
this state or serves property in this state.
(17) "Residential fire alarm technician" means a
licensed individual who is designated by a registered firm to:
(A) plan, install, service, inspect, and certify
residential single-family or two-family fire alarm or detection
systems;
(B) perform the servicing or maintenance of a
previously installed residential single-family or two-family fire
alarm or detection system and certify the service or maintenance;
or
(C) provide direct on-site supervision of an
unlicensed employee of a registered firm while the employee is
installing, servicing, inspecting, or maintaining residential
single-family or two-family fire alarm or detection systems.
SECTION__.02. Section 3, Article 5.43-2, Insurance Code, is
amended by amending Subsection (b) and adding Subsections (d) and
(e) to read as follows:
(b) The licensing provisions of this article shall not apply
to:
(1) a person or organization in the business of
building construction that installs electrical wiring and devices
that may include in part the installation of a fire alarm or
detection system if:
(A) the person or organization is a party to a
contract that provides that the installation will be performed
under the direct supervision of and certified by a licensed
employee or agent of a firm registered to install and certify such
an alarm or detection device and that the registered firm assumes
full responsibility for the installation of the alarm or detection
device; and
(B) the person or organization does not plan,
certify, lease, sell, service, or maintain fire alarms or detection
devices or systems;
(2) a person or organization that owns and installs
fire detection or fire alarm devices on the person's or
organization's own property or, if the person or organization does
not charge for the device or its installation, installs it for the
protection of the person's or organization's personal property
located on another's property and does not install the devices as a
normal business practice on the property of another;
(3) a person who holds a license or other form of
permission issued by an incorporated city or town to practice as an
electrician and who installs fire or smoke detection and alarm
devices in no building other than a single family or multifamily
residence if:
(A) the devices installed are:
(i) single station detectors; or
(ii) multiple station detectors capable of
being connected in such a manner that actuation of one detector
causes all integral or separate alarms to operate, if the detectors
are not connected to a control panel or to an outside alarm, do not
transmit a signal off the premises, and do not use more than 120
volts; and
(B) all installations comply with provisions of
the adopted edition of [Household Fire Warning Equipment,] National
Fire Protection Association Standard No. 72 [74];
(4) a person or organization that sells fire detection
or fire alarm devices if the sales are exclusively over-the-counter
or by mail order and if the person or organization does not plan,
certify, install, service, or maintain this equipment;
(5) response to a fire alarm or detection device by a
law enforcement agency or fire department or by a law enforcement
officer or fireman acting in an official capacity;
(6) a Texas registered professional engineer acting
solely in his professional capacity;
(7) a person or an organization that provides and
installs at no charge to the property owners or residents a
battery-powered smoke detector in a single-family or two-family
residence if:
(A) the smoke detector bears a label of listing
or approval by a testing laboratory approved by the State Board of
Insurance;
(B) the installation complies with provisions of
the adopted edition of National Fire Protection Association
Standard No. 72 [74];
(C) the installers are knowledgeable in fire
protection and the proper use of smoke detectors; and
(D) the detector is a single station installation
and not a part of or connected to any other detection device or
system;
(8) an [a regular] employee of a registered firm who is
under the direct on-site supervision of a licensee;
(9) a building owner, the owner's managing agent, or
their employees who install battery-operated single-station smoke
detectors or who monitor fire alarm or fire detection devices or
systems in the owner's building, and in which the monitoring is
performed at the owner's property and monitored at no charge to the
occupants of the building, and complies with applicable standards
of the National Fire Protection Association as may be adopted by
rule promulgated under this Act, and utilizes equipment approved by
a testing laboratory approved by the State Board of Insurance for
fire alarm monitoring;
(10) a person employed by a registered firm that sells
and installs a smoke or heat detector in a single-family or
two-family residence if:
(A) the detector bears a label of listing or
approval by a testing laboratory approved by the State Board of
Insurance;
(B) the installation complies with provisions of
the adopted edition of National Fire Protection Association
Standard No. 72 [74];
(C) the installers are knowledgeable in fire
protection and the proper use and placement of detectors; and
(D) the detector is a single station installation
and not a part of or connected to any other detection device or
system; or
(11) a person or organization licensed to install or
service burglar alarms under Chapter 1702, Occupations Code, [the
Private Investigators and Private Security Agencies Act (Article
4413(29bb), Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes)] that provides and
installs in a single-family or two-family residence a combination
keypad that includes a panic button to initiate a fire alarm signal
if the fire alarm signal:
(A) is monitored by a fire alarm firm registered
under this article; and
(B) is not initiated by any fire or smoke
detection device.
(d) A political subdivision may not require a registered
firm, a licensee, or an employee of a registered firm to maintain a
business location or residency within that political subdivision to
engage in a business or perform any activity authorized under this
article.
(e) A municipality or county may by ordinance require a
registered firm to make a telephone call to a monitored property
before the firm notifies the municipality or county of an alarm
signal received by the firm from a fire detection device.
SECTION__.03. Section 5, Article 5.43-2, Insurance Code, is
amended by adding Subsection (c-1) to read as follows:
(c-1) A residential fire alarm technician must obtain a
license issued by the board. The amount of the initial fee for the
license may not exceed $50, and the amount of the annual license
renewal fee may not exceed $50.
SECTION__.04. Sections 5B(e) and (f), Article 5.43-2,
Insurance Code, are amended to read as follows:
(e) For a person who is licensed to install or service
burglar alarms under Chapter 1702, Occupations Code [the Private
Investigators and Private Security Agencies Act (Article
4413(29bb), Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes)], compliance with the
insurance requirements of that chapter [Act] constitutes
compliance with the insurance requirements of this section if the
insurance held by the person complies with the requirements of this
section in amounts and types of coverage.
(f) For a person who is licensed to install or service
burglar alarms under Chapter 1702, Occupations Code [the Private
Investigators and Private Security Agencies Act (Article
4413(29bb), Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes)], compliance with the
bond and insurance requirements of that chapter [Act] constitutes
compliance with the bond and insurance requirements of this
section.
SECTION__.05. Section 5D, Article 5.43-2, Insurance Code,
is amended by amending Subsections (a) and (d) and adding
Subsection (a-2) to read as follows:
(a) Each applicant for a fire alarm technician, fire alarm
planning superintendent, or residential fire alarm superintendent
license must pass a written examination. Examinations shall be
conducted by the State Fire Marshal or a testing service selected by
the State Fire Marshal. Examinations shall cover this article and
board rules and shall include specific testing of all categories of
licensure. Not later than the 30th day after the day on which an
examination is administered under this article, the State Fire
Marshal shall send notice to each examinee of the results of the
examination. If an examination is conducted, graded, or reviewed
by a testing service, the State Fire Marshal shall send notice to
the examinees of the results of the examination within two weeks
after the date on which the State Fire Marshal receives the results
from the testing service. If the notice of the examination results
will be delayed for longer than 90 days after the examination date,
the State Fire Marshal shall send notice to the examinee of the
reason for the delay before the 90th day. If requested in writing
by a person who fails the examination administered under this
article, the State Fire Marshal shall send to the person an analysis
of the person's performance on the examination.
(a-2) An applicant for a residential fire alarm technician
license must provide with the required license application evidence
of the applicant's successful completion of the required classroom
instruction from a training school approved by the State Fire
Marshal in accordance with this section.
(d) The training curriculum for a fire alarm technician and
a residential fire alarm superintendent course shall consist of 16
hours of classroom instruction on all categories of licensure. The
training curriculum for a residential fire alarm technician course
shall consist of eight hours of classroom instruction on
installing, servicing, and maintaining single-family and
two-family residential fire alarm systems as defined by National
Fire Protection Association Standard No. 72.
SECTION__.06. Section 6A, Article 5.43-2, Insurance Code,
is amended by adding Subsection (c) to read as follows:
(c) The commissioner may not adopt a rule to administer this
article that requires a financial membership, relationship,
affiliation, or subscription with a firm, company, or organization
that is not required to be registered under this article.
SECTION__.07. Section 7, Article 5.43-2, Insurance Code, is
amended by amending Subsection (b) and adding Subsection (f) to
read as follows:
(b) Except as provided by Subsection (c), a political
subdivision may not offer [residential] alarm system sales,
service, installation, or monitoring unless it has been providing
monitoring services [to residences] within the boundaries of the
political subdivision as of September 1, 1999. Any fee charged by
the political subdivision may not exceed the cost of the
monitoring.
(f) A residential fire alarm technician may not provide
direct on-site supervision to an employee for purposes of Section
3(b)(8) of this article other than on residential single-family or
two-family fire alarm or detection systems.
SECTION__.08. Sections 9(d) and (e), Article 5.43-2,
Insurance Code, are amended to read as follows:
(d) No fire detection or fire alarm device may be sold or
installed in this state unless accompanied by printed information
supplied to the owner by the supplier or installing contractor
concerning:
(1) instructions describing the installation,
operation, testing, and proper maintenance of the device;
(2) information which will aid in establishing an
emergency evacuation plan for the protected premises; [and]
(3) the telephone number and location, including
notification procedures, of the nearest fire department; and
(4) information that will aid in reducing the number
of false fire alarms.
(e) Each registered firm that employs persons that are
exempt from the licensing provisions of this article pursuant to
Section 3(b)(10) of this article is required to appropriately train
and supervise such exempt persons so as to ensure that each
installation complies with the adopted provisions of National Fire
Protection Standard No. 72 [74] or other adopted standards, that
each smoke or heat detector installed or sold carries a label or
listing of approval by a testing laboratory approved by the State
Board of Insurance, and that such exempt persons are knowledgeable
in fire protection and the proper use and placement of detectors.
SECTION__.09. (a) Not later than March 1, 2006, the Texas
Department of Insurance shall adopt the rules and forms necessary
to implement the changes in law made by this Act to Article 5.43-2,
Insurance Code.
(b) Notwithstanding Article 5.43-2, Insurance Code, a
residential fire alarm technician is not required to obtain a
license under that article before June 1, 2006.
SECTION__.10. This Act takes effect September 1, 2005.