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A1930
ASSEMBLY, No. 1930
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
222nd LEGISLATURE
�
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2026 SESSION
Sponsored by:
Assemblywoman ANNETTE QUIJANO
District 20 (Union)
Co-Sponsored by:
Assemblyman Danielsen
SYNOPSIS
���� Requires fire suppression systems in new single and
two family homes.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
���� Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative
Counsel.
��
An Act
concerning new home fire safety and
supplementing the "State Uniform Construction Code Act," P.L.1975,
c.217 (C.52:27D-119 et seq.).
����
Be It
Enacted
by the Senate and General Assembly of
the State of New Jersey:
���� 1.��� This act shall be known
and may be cited as the "New Home Fire Safety Act."
���� 2.��� As used in this act:
���� "Commissioner" means
the Commissioner of Community Affairs.
���� "Fire suppression
system" means an engineered or pre-engineered system that suppresses a
fire using an extinguishing agent distributed through fixed piping and nozzles
that are activated either manually or automatically.� The system may include
containers, nozzles, controls, automatic detection, manual releases, equipment
shut downs, and alarms.� In such systems, an extinguishing agent is discharged
through fixed pipes and nozzles into or over a potential fire hazard.
���� "Manufactured home"
means a unit of housing manufactured in accordance with the standards
promulgated for a manufactured home by the Secretary of the United States
Department of Housing and Urban Development pursuant to the "National
Manufactured Housing Construction and Safety Standards Act of 1974,"
Pub.L.93-383 (42 U.S.C. s. 5401 et seq.).
���� "New home" means a
dwelling not previously occupied, for which a construction permit has been
issued after the effective date of P.L.��� , c.�� (C.��� ) (pending before the
Legislature as this bill) and intended for residential use by not more than two
households, but shall not mean a manufactured home or a dwelling that is not
connected to a public water system, as defined by section 3 of P.L.1977, c.224
(C.58:12A-3), the �Safe Drinking Water Act.�
���� 3.��� a.� In any case where a
change of occupancy of any building subject to the requirements of section 1 of
P.L.1991, c.92 (C.52:27D-198.1) is subject to a municipal ordinance requiring
the issuance of a certificate of occupancy, certificate of inspection, or other
documentary certification of compliance with laws and regulations relating to
safety, healthfulness, and upkeep of the premises, no such certificate shall be
issued until the municipal officer or agency responsible for its issuance has
received a certification from the enforcing agency that the new home is
equipped with a fire suppression system that conforms to the requirements
promulgated by the commissioner, pursuant to the State Uniform Construction
Code and section 4 of P.L.��� , c. (C. )
(pending before the Legislature as this bill).
���� b.��� The local governing body
having jurisdiction over the enforcing agency or, where the Division of Codes
and Standards is the enforcing agency, the commissioner, may establish a fee
which covers the cost of inspection and of issuance of the certificate; however,
if an inspection is being made and a certificate is being issued evidencing
compliance with section 2 of P.L.1991, c.92 (C.52:27D-198.2), the fee
authorized therein shall cover the costs of complying with this section.
���� 4.��� The commissioner shall
modify the building subcode of the State Uniform Construction Code to require
the installation of fire suppression systems in all new one- and two family
homes pursuant to P.L.��� , c.�� (C.������ ) (pending before the Legislature as
this bill). The modification shall require all fire suppression systems to be
in compliance with subchapter 10 of chapter 10 of Title 7 of the New Jersey
Administrative Code regarding Physical Connections and Cross Connection Control
by Containment, and shall require the installation of separate shut-off valves
and a meter for measuring water usage dedicated to fire suppression.
���� 5.��� This act shall take
effect on the first day of the seventh month next following the date of
enactment of P.L.��� , c.�� (C.������ ) (pending before the Legislature as this
bill) and shall not apply to new homes built as part of a development plan or
building permit approved on or before the effective date of this act.
STATEMENT
���� This bill, entitled the �New
Home Fire Safety Act,� would require the installation of a fire suppression
system in new single and two-family homes during the home�s construction.� The
provisions of the bill would not apply to manufactured homes, or to any single
and two-family homes that are not connected to public water systems.� The bill
would also provide that a certificate of occupancy may not be issued for a new
home until the State or local code enforcement agency determines that the home
is equipped with a fire suppression system that conforms to State Uniform
Construction Code systems promulgated by the Commissioner of Community
Affairs.� Equipping new single and two-family homes with fire suppression
systems will provide protection for the State�s residents and firefighters.
���� Any modifications made by the
Commissioner of Community Affairs to the State Uniform Construction Code must
require all fire suppression systems to be in compliance with State
administrative regulations regarding physical connections and cross connection
control, mandate the installation of separate shut-off valves, and
require a meter for measuring water
usage dedicated to fire suppression.� The bill permits municipalities and the
Commissioner of Community Affairs to each establish a fee that covers the cost
of inspection and the issuance of a certificate of occupancy.
���� The requirements of this bill
would apply to newly constructed single and two-family homes as of the first
day of the seventh month after enactment.� Accordingly, development plans and
building permits approved prior to the bill�s effective date would not be
subject to the provisions of the bill.