Chapter 794 Oregon Laws 1999

Session Law

AN ACT

SB 1081

Relating to special deputy electrical inspectors; amending ORS 479.540, 479.730 and 479.760.

Be It Enacted by the People of the State of Oregon:

SECTION 1. ORS 479.760 is amended to read:

479.760. (1) No electrical product shall be certified unless it meets minimum safety standards.

(2) Any person may apply to have the Department of Consumer and Business Services certify an electrical product. The department shall certify an electrical product if it is shown to meet minimum safety standards by one of the following methods:

(a) To have an electrical product certified, a person may submit a specimen, sample or prototype to the department within a reasonable time before the date on which certification will be required, together with a fee set by the department sufficient to defray the cost of shipment and evaluation. The department shall evaluate the electrical product to determine whether it meets minimum safety standards. Not later than six months after receipt of a specimen, prototype or sample the department shall complete the required evaluation and give a decision certifying or rejecting the product. The department may appoint a special deputy or enter into an appropriate contract with a testing laboratory approved by the Electrical and Elevator Board under this section for the evaluation required under this paragraph.

(b) To have an electrical product certified, a person may submit satisfactory proof to the department that a specimen, sample or prototype of the product requested to be certified has been inspected by a testing laboratory approved by the Electrical and Elevator Board under this section and the tests of the laboratory show that the electrical product is safe within minimum safety standards.

(3) A city or county that administers and enforces the electrical specialty code under ORS 455.150 shall provide for field inspections of industrial electrical equipment identified by rule by the Director of the Department of Consumer and Business Services. Inspections shall be performed by an electrical specialty code inspector certified by the director, an evaluation firm approved by the director or an electrical specialty code inspector under contract to the state, city or county. Subject to ORS 479.845, a city or county that administers a program for field inspections under this subsection may recover the costs associated with the inspection and any inspection report.

(4) The director shall consider the following as positive indicators of a product's safety:

(a) Components listed by the Canadian Standards Association.

(b) Electrical raceways not used for grounding purposes when not subject to physical damage.

(c) Pilot duty devices such as push buttons, limit switches, relays or cord connectors that are used on control circuits supplied by:

(A) A Class 2 circuit;

(B) An isolating source such that the maximum open circuit voltage potential available to the circuit is not more than 30 volts AC or 42.5 volts DC; or

(C) An isolating source such that the power available to the circuit does not exceed 15 watts.

(d) Unlisted conductors provided the owner, lessee, vendor, manufacturer, installer or approved evaluation firm submits a satisfactory high voltage potential test of the conductor insulation.

(e) Fuses and fuse holders manufactured according to the National Electrical Manufacturers Association standard design and listed by an approved electrical testing laboratory.

[(3)] (5) The Director of the Department of Consumer and Business Services with the approval of the board shall establish standards and procedures for the approval of testing laboratories to test electrical products in the certification process under this section. Those procedures shall provide for the approval of any testing laboratory that meets those standards established for conducting scientific safety tests of electrical products and equipment.

SECTION 2. ORS 479.730 is amended to read:

479.730. In compliance with ORS 183.310 to 183.550 the Director of the Department of Consumer and Business Services, with the approval of the Electrical and Elevator Board, shall adopt reasonable rules:

(1) Establishing, altering or revoking minimum safety standards for workmanship and materials in various classifications of electrical installations.

(2) Establishing, altering or revoking minimum safety standards for design and construction of electrical products to be sold or disposed of in this state. Standards established under this subsection may include the certification of electrical products that a testing laboratory approved by the board under ORS 479.760 has tested and found to be safe within the minimum safety standards established under this section.

(3) Relating to the procedure for certifying and decertifying electrical products to be sold or disposed of in this state. The Department of Consumer and Business Services, with the approval of the board, may limit the type of electrical products it accepts for certification under ORS 479.760 (2)(a).

(4) Prescribing times, places and circumstances that permits shall be exhibited for inspection.

(5) Governing the internal organization and procedure for administering and enforcing ORS 479.510 to 479.945 and 479.990 (5).

(6) Establishing, altering, approving or revoking minimum standards for electrical training programs.

(7)(a) Establishing which electrical products may be field evaluated by a field evaluation firm rather than certified;

(b) Establishing cost-based fees, requirements and procedures for approving, maintaining and suspending or revoking approvals of field evaluation firms;

(A) Requirements and procedures for the field evaluation of electrical products;

(B) Requirements and procedures for issuing field evaluation labels for the electrical products evaluated by field evaluation firms, testing laboratories and special deputies; and

(d) Establishing requirements and procedures for preparation of reports regarding installation safety issued by field evaluation firms;

(e) Establishing when an inspecting jurisdiction may require a report from a field evaluation firm; and

(f) Establishing other requirements necessary to carry out this subsection and subsection (8) of this section.

(8) Establishing a program to authorize special deputies to conduct field inspections provided for under subsection (7) of this section.

(9) Establishing a program for cities and counties that administer and enforce the electrical specialty code to conduct field inspections of industrial electrical equipment identified under ORS 479.760 (3).

SECTION 3. ORS 479.540 is amended to read:

479.540. (1) Except as otherwise provided in this subsection, no person is required to obtain a license to make an electrical installation on property that is owned by the person or a member of the person's immediate family if the property is not intended for sale, exchange, lease or rent. The following apply to the exemption established in this subsection:

(a) The exemption established for a person under this subsection does not exempt the work performed by the person from having to comply with the requirements for such work under ORS chapter 455 or this chapter and rules adopted thereunder.

(b) If the property is a building used as a residence and is for rent, lease, sale or exchange, this subsection establishes an exemption for work on, alterations to or replacement of parts of electrical installations as necessary for maintenance of the existing electrical installations on that property, but does not exempt new electrical installations or substantial alterations to existing electrical installations on that property. As used in this paragraph, "new electrical installations or substantial alterations" does not include the replacement of an existing garbage disposal, dishwasher or electric hot water heater with a similar appliance of 30 amps or less, single phase, by a landlord, landlord's agent or the employee of the landlord or landlord's agent.

(2) No electrical contractor license is required in connection with an electrical installation:

(a) Of meters and similar devices for measuring electricity by a person principally engaged in the business of generating or selling electricity in connection with the construction or maintenance of electrical lines, wires or equipment.

(b) Of ignition or lighting systems for motor vehicles.

(d) To be made by a public utility, telecommunications utility or municipality for generation, transmission or distribution of electricity on property which it owns or manages.

(3) No person whose sole business is generating or selling electricity in connection with the construction or maintenance of electrical lines, wires or equipment, is required to obtain a license to transform, transmit or distribute electricity from its source to the service head of the premises to be supplied thereby.

(4)(a) No person is required to obtain a license for the repair or replacement of light fixtures, light switches, lighting ballast, electrical outlets or smoke detectors in a building used for housing purposes that is owned, leased, managed or operated by a housing authority and the person doing the repair or replacement is a member of the housing authority's regular maintenance staff.

(b) No license is required for:

(A) Temporary demonstrations;

(B) A street lighting system located on a public street or in a right of way if the system is similar to a system provided by a public utility and the installation or maintenance, or both, is performed by a qualified employee of a licensed electrical contractor principally engaged in the business of installing and maintaining such systems; or

(C) An outdoor transmission or distribution system, whether overhead or underground, if the system is similar to a system provided by a public utility and the installation or maintenance, or both, is performed by a qualified employee of a licensed electrical contractor principally engaged in the business of installing and maintaining such systems.

(c) For the purposes of this subsection, "qualified employee" means an employee who has registered with or graduated from a State of Oregon or federally approved apprenticeship course designed for the work being performed. The supervising electrician signature required under ORS 479.560 (1)(b) does not apply to contractors working under this subsection.

(5) The provisions of ORS 479.510 to 479.945 do not apply:

(a) To electrical products owned by, supplied to or to be supplied to a public utility as defined in ORS 757.005 or telecommunications utility as defined in ORS 759.005;

(b) To electrical installations made by or for such a public utility or telecommunications utility where the electrical installations are an integral part of the equipment or electrical products of such utility; or

(c) To any electrical generation plant owned or operated by a municipality to the same extent as a public utility or telecommunications utility under paragraphs (a) and (b) of this subsection.

(6) No permit is required:

(a) For the repair or replacement of light fixtures, light switches, lighting ballast, electrical outlets or smoke detectors in a building used for housing purposes that is owned, leased, managed or operated by a housing authority; or

(b) For the repair, alteration or replacement of existing electrical products or electrical installations authorized by ORS 479.560 (3) at an industrial plant, a commercial office building, a building that is owned, leased, managed or operated by the state or a local government entity or other facilities designated by the Electrical and Elevator Board when the owner, operating manager or electrical contractor of the facility meets the provisions of ORS 479.630 (1) and (2) and:

(A) Obtains a master permit for inspection under ORS 479.560 (3); or

(B) Obtains a master individual inspection permit under ORS 479.565.

(7) In cases of emergency in industrial plants no permit is required in advance for electrical installation made by a person licensed as a general supervising electrician, a general journeyman electrician or an electrical apprentice under ORS 479.630 if an application accompanied by appropriate fee for a permit is submitted to the Department of Consumer and Business Services within five days after the commencement of such electrical work.

(8) No person is required to obtain a license or permit to set in place and connect a certified electrical product as long as the work performed is not an electrical installation as defined in ORS 479.530.

(9) The provisions of ORS 479.510 to 479.945 do not apply to electrical installations involving:

(a) Communication and signal systems of railroad companies.

(b) Telephone terminal equipment and communications systems including all grandfathered or registered telephone terminal equipment and communications systems identified in the Federal Communications Commission rules and regulations, Volume X, part 68, and all terminal equipment and communications systems that are utilized in conjunction with private line communications services.

(c) Remote and permanent broadcast systems of radio and television stations licensed by the Federal Communications Commission if the systems are not part of the building's permanent wiring.

(10)(a) The board may grant partial or complete exemptions by rule for any electrical product from any of the provisions of ORS 455.610 to 455.630 or 479.510 to 479.945 if the board determines that the electrical product does not present a danger to the health and safety of the people of this state.

(b) If the board grants an exemption pursuant to subsection (1) of this section, the board may determine that the product may be installed by a person not licensed under ORS 479.510 to 479.945.

(11) ORS 479.760 does not apply to products described in this subsection that comply with the minimum electrical installation safety code. This subsection does not exempt any products used in locations determined to be hazardous in the electrical code of this state. The following apply to this subsection:

(a) Except as provided in paragraph (b) of this subsection, the exemption under this subsection applies to:

(A) Industrial electrical equipment that is factory wired using separately certified components and is custom-made, limited produced or outside the scope, as determined by the Director of the Department of Consumer and Business Services, of the standards and requirements of Underwriters Laboratories, Canadian Standards Association or American National Standards Institute as in effect on the effective date of this 1999 Act.

(B) The rotating equipment portion of power generation equipment.

(D) Commercial electrical air conditioning equipment.

(E) Prefabricated work performed by an electrical contractor with licensed electrical personnel in the contractor's place of business for assembly on the job site if the work is composed of parts that are certified electrical products.

(b) Notwithstanding paragraph (a) of this subsection, the board may require any of the products described in paragraph (a) of this subsection to be subject to the certification requirements under ORS 479.760 if the board determines that the product or class of products has presented a fire or life safety hazard in use. A determination under this paragraph shall be effective as to any such product or class of products sold or offered for sale after the date of the determination becomes final. The board may reinstate any exemption removed under this paragraph if the board determines that the reasons for the removal of the exemption have been corrected.

(12) ORS 479.760 does not apply to electrical equipment that has been in use for one year or more and that is offered for sale.

(13) A person who holds a limited maintenance specialty contractor license or a limited pump installation specialty contractor license issued under ORS 479.510 to 479.945 or a person who is the employee of such license holder and who is listed with the board as an employee is not required to have a journeyman license or supervising electrician's license to perform work authorized under the person's license.

(14) No person is required to obtain a permit for work on, alterations to or replacement of parts of electrical installations as necessary for maintenance of existing electrical installations on residential property owned by the person or by a member of the person's immediate family. This subsection does not establish an exemption for new electrical installations or substantial alterations to existing electrical installations.

(15) No permit is required for those minor electrical installations for which the board has authorized an installation label.

(16) A residential home, as defined in ORS 443.580, and an adult foster home, as defined in ORS 443.705, shall not be considered to be a multifamily dwelling and only electrical installation standards and safety requirements applicable to single family dwellings apply to such homes.

(17) The permit requirements of ORS 479.550 and the license requirements of ORS 479.620 do not apply to cable television installations.

(18) The provisions of any electrical products code or rule adopted pursuant to ORS 479.510 to 479.945 apply to cable and such products installed as part of a cable television installation.

Approved by the Governor July 20, 1999

Filed in the office of Secretary of State July 20, 1999

Effective date October 23, 1999

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