AUTHOR'S / SPONSOR'S STATEMENT OF INTENT
According to Section 6002.158(c), Insurance Code, training school instructors must be approved by the state fire marshal. To be eligible for approval, an instructor must hold a fire alarm planning superintendent license and have at least three years of experience in fire alarm installation, service, or monitoring.
This law sets unnecessary high standards of training for a person to be eligible to adequately teach such courses because fire alarm superintendents must already be licensed engineers or pass a test that is equivalent to an engineer’s examination.
These high standards make it difficult for the schools approved by the state fire marshal to find and keep qualified instructors, since most of the fire alarm planning superintendents are in high demand and subject to time constraints.
This bill creates additional alternatives by providing that in order to be approved as an instructor, a person may also hold either a fire alarm technician license or a residential fire alarm superintendent license.
H.B. 458 amends current law relating to eligibility requirements for a residential fire alarm training school instructor.
RULEMAKING AUTHORITY
SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS
SECTION 1. Amends Section 6002.158(c), Insurance Code, to require training school instructors, in order to be eligible for approval by the state fire marshal, to hold a fire alarm planning superintendent license, a residential fire alarm superintendent license, or a fire alarm technician license and have at least three years of experience in fire alarm installation, service, or monitoring, and to make nonsubstantive changes.
SECTION 2. Provides that the change in law made by this Act applies only to an application for approval or renewal of approval of a training school instructor submitted to the state fire marshal on or after the effective date of this Act. Provides that an application submitted before the effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect immediately before the effective date of this Act, and that law is continued in effect for that purpose.
SECTION 3. Effective date: September 1, 2013.