Rhode Island General Laws Title 23. Health and Safety § 23-29.1-3. Content, adoption, and administration of the rehabilitation building code for existing buildings and structures

(a) Content.  The rehabilitation building and fire code for existing buildings and structures shall have a building code element and a fire safety code element and shall make provisions for the repair, renovation, alteration, reconstruction, and change of use of and additions to existing buildings and structures.  The code shall set forth standards for different types of uses;  and for mixed-use buildings and structures, each portion of the building or structure shall be separately classified as to use.  The standards shall include, but not be limited to, standards for building;  for load bearing and structural elements;  for plumbing, electrical, and mechanical systems;  for fire resistant walls and for fire suppression, fire alarm, and fire detection systems;  for accessibility, including accessibility for persons with disabilities, means of egress, elevators, escalators, stairways, doors, ramps, fire alarms, floor surfaces, restrooms and corridors;  for vents and ventilation systems;  and for historic buildings;  provided however that such standards shall not affect minimum standards for habitancy.

(b) Committee on drafting.  There shall be a sixteen (16) member committee on drafting the rehabilitation building and fire code for existing buildings and structures which shall have as its members the ten (10) voting members of the joint committee, the state fire marshal, the state building code commissioner, a representative of grow smart RI appointed by the chairperson of grow smart RI, a representative of the Rhode Island builders association appointed by the president of the Rhode Island builders association, a representative of the governor's commission on disabilities, appointed by the chairperson of the governor's commission on disabilities, and an historical preservation architect appointed by the executive director of the Rhode Island historical preservation and heritage commission.  The executive secretary of the joint committee shall serve as secretary of the committee on drafting and be a nonvoting member of the committee.  It shall be the duty of the joint committee to develop a rehabilitation building and fire code for existing buildings and structures, which shall have an element pertaining to fire safety and an element pertaining to building standards, and to recommend said rehabilitation building and fire code for consideration by the joint committee.  The committee on drafting shall terminate upon an affirmative vote of the joint committee to recommend the rehabilitation building and fire code for existing buildings and structures for adoption by the building code standards committee and the fire safety code board of appeal and review.

(c) Adoption.  The building code element shall be effective upon adoption by the building code standards committee pursuant to § 23-27.3-100.1.3 and the fire safety code element shall be effective upon adoption by the fire safety code board of appeal and review pursuant to § 23-28.3-3.  Public hearings required by chapter 35 of title 42 for the adoption, amendment, or revision of the rehabilitation building and fire code for existing buildings and structures and each of the elements thereof shall be conducted by the joint committee.

(d) Administration.  Except as set forth in this chapter, the building code element shall be administered as a building code in accordance with the provisions of chapter 27.3 of this title, the fire safety code element shall be administered as a fire safety code by the division of fire safety in accordance with the provisions of chapter 28.2 of this title.