E6-16818. National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) Proposes To Revise Codes and Standards

AGENCY:

National Institute of Standards and Technology, Commerce.

ACTION:

Notice.

SUMMARY:

The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) proposes to revise some of its safety codes and standards and requests proposals from the public to amend existing or begin the process of developing new NFPA safety codes and standards. The purpose of this request is to increase public participation in the system used by NFPA to develop its codes and standards. The publication of this notice of request for proposals by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) on behalf of NFPA is being undertaken as a public service; NIST does not necessarily endorse, approve, or recommend any of the standards referenced in the notice.

The NFPA process provides ample opportunity for public participation in the development of its codes and standards. All NFPA codes and standards are revised and updated every three to five years in Revision Cycles that begin twice each year and that takes approximately two years to complete. Each Revision Cycle proceeds according to a published schedule that includes final dates for all major events in the process. The process contains five basic steps that are followed both for developing new documents as well as revising existing documents. These steps are: Calling for Proposals; Publishing the Proposals in the Report on Proposals; Calling for Comments on the Committee's disposition of the proposals and these Comments are published in the Report on Comments; having a Technical Report Session at the NFPA Annual Meeting; and finally, the Standards Council Consideration and Issuance of documents.

Note:

Under new rules effective Fall 2005, anyone wishing to make Amending Motions on the Technical Committee Reports (ROP and ROC) must signal their intention by submitting a Notice of Intent to Make a Motion by the Deadline stated in the ROC. Certified motions will then be posted on the NFPA Web site. Documents that receive notice of proper Amending Motions (Certified Amending Motions) will be presented for action at the annual June Association Technical Meeting. Documents that receive no motions will be forwarded directly to the Standards Council for action on issuance.

For more information on these new rules and for up-to-date information on schedules and deadlines for processing NFPA Documents, check the NFPA Web site at www.nfpa.org or contact NFPA Codes and Standards Administration.

DATES:

Interested persons may submit proposals on or before the dates listed with the standards.

ADDRESSES:

Casey C. Grant, Secretary, Standards Council, NFPA, 1 Batterymarch Park, Quincy, Massachusetts 02269-7471.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Casey C. Grant, Secretary, Standards Council, at above address, [phone].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) develops building, fire, and electrical safety codes and standards. Federal agencies frequently use these codes and standards as the basis for developing Federal regulations concerning safety. Often, the Office of the Federal Register approves the incorporation by reference of these standards under 5 U.S.C. 552(a) and 1 CFR Part 51.

When a Technical Committee begins the development of a new or revised NFPA code or standard, it enters one of two Revision Cycles available each year. The Revision Cycle begins with the Call for Proposals, that is, a public notice asking for any interested persons to submit specific written proposals for developing or revising the Document. The Call for Proposals is published in a variety of publications. Interested parties have approximately twenty weeks to respond to the Call for Proposals.

Following the Call for Proposals period, the Technical Committee holds a meeting to consider and accept, reject or revise, in whole or in part, all the submitted Proposals. The committee may also develop its own Proposals. A document known as the Report on Proposals, or ROP, is prepared containing all the Public Proposals, the Technical Committees' action and each Proposal, as well as all Committee-generated Proposals. The ROP is then submitted for the approval of the Technical Committee by a formal written ballot. If the ROP does not receive approval by a two-thirds vote calculated in accordance with NFPA rules, the Report is returned to the committee for further consideration and is not published. If the necessary approval is received, the ROP is published in a compilation of Reports on Proposals issued by NFPA twice yearly for public review and comment, and the process continues to the next step.

The Reports on Proposals are sent automatically free of charge to all who submitted proposals and each respective committee member, as well as anyone else who requests a copy. All ROP's are also available for free downloading at www.nfpa.org.

Once the ROP becomes available, there is a 60-day comment period during which anyone may submit a Public Comment on the proposed changes in the ROP. The committee then reconvenes at the end of the comment period and acts on all Comments.

As before, a two-thirds approval vote by written ballot of the eligible members of the committee is required for approval of actions on the Comments. All of this information is complied into a second Report, called the Report on Comments (ROC), which, like the ROP, is published and made available for public review for a seven-week period.

The process of public input and review does not end with the publication of the ROP and ROC. Following the completion of the Proposal and Comment periods, there is yet a further opportunity for debate and discussion through the Technical Report Sessions that take place at the NFPA Annual Meeting.

The Technical Report Session provides an opportunity for the final Technical Committee Report (i.e., the ROP and ROC) on each proposed new or revised code or standard to be presented to the NFPA membership for the debate and consideration of motions to amend the Report. Before making an allowable motion at a Technical Report Session, the intended maker of the motion must file, in advance of the session, and within the published deadline, a Notice of Intent to Make a Motion. A Motions Committee appointed by the Standards Council then reviews all notices and certifies all amending motions that are proper. Only these Certified Amending Motions, together with certain allowable Follow-Up Motions (that is, motions that have become necessary as a result of previous successful amending motions) will be allowed at the Technical Report Session.

For more information on dates/locations of NFPA Technical Committee meetings and NFPA Annual Technical Report Sessions, check the NFPA Web site at: http://www.nfpa.org/​itemDetail.asp?​categoryID=​822&​itemID=​22818

The specific rules for the types of motions that can be made are who can make them are set forth in NFPA's Regulation Governing Committee Projects which should always be consulted by those wishing to bring an issue before the membership at a Technical Report Session.

Interested persons may submit proposals, supported by written data, views, or arguments to Casey C. Grant, Secretary, Standards Council, NFPA, 1 Batterymarch Park, Quincy, Massachusetts 02269-7471. Proposals should be submitted on forms available from the NFPA Codes and Standards Administration Office or on NFPA's Web site at www.nfpa.org.

Each person must include his or her name and address, identify the document and give reasons for the proposal. Proposals received before or by 5 p.m. local time on the closing date indicated would be acted on by the Committee. The NFPA will consider any proposal that it receives on or before the date listed with the codes or standard.

Document—Edition	Document title	Proposal closing date
NFPA 45—2004	Standard on Fire Protection for Laboratories Using Chemicals	11/22/2006
NFPA 51B—2003	Standard for Fire Prevention During Welding, Cutting, and Other Hot Work	11/22/2006
NFPA 52—2006	Vehicular Fuel Systems Code	11/22/2006
NFPA 54—2006	National Fuel Gas Code	11/22/2006
NFPA 55—2005	Standard for the Storage, Use, and Handling of Compressed Gases and Cryogenic Fluids in Portable and Stationary Containers, Cylinders, and Tanks	5/25/2007
NFPA 59A—2006	Standard for the Production, Storage, and Handling of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG)	11/22/2006
NFPA 90A—2002	Standard for the Installation of Air-Conditioning and Ventilating Systems	11/22/2006
NFPA 90B—2006	Standard for the Installation of Warm Air Heating and Air-Conditioning Systems	11/22/2006
NFPA 92A—2006	Standard for Smoke-Control Systems Utilizing Barriers and Pressure Differences	11/22/2006
NFPA 92B—2005	Standard for Smoke Management Systems in Malls, Atria, and Large Spaces	11/22/2006
NFPA 170—2006	Standard for Fire Safety and Emergency Symbols	11/22/2006
NFPA 241—2004	Standard for Safeguarding Construction, Alteration, and Demolition Operations	11/22/2006
NFPA 256—2003	Standard Methods of Fire Tests of Roof Coverings	11/22/2006
NFPA 260—2003	Standard Methods of Tests and Classification System for Cigarette Ignition Resistance of Components of Upholstered Furniture	11/22/2006
NFPA 261—2003	Standard Method of Test for Determining Resistance of Mock-Up Upholstered Furniture Material Assemblies to Ignition by Smoldering Cigarettes	11/22/2006
NFPA 274—2003	Standard Test Method to Evaluate Fire Performance Characteristics of Pipe Insulation	11/22/2006
NFPA 275—P *	Standard Method of Tests for the Evaluation of Thermal Barriers Used Over Foam Plastic	11/22/2006
NFPA 290—2003	Standard for Fire Testing of Passive Protection Materials for Use on LP-Gas Containers	11/22/2006
NFPA 306—2003	Standard for the Control of Gas Hazards on Vessels	11/22/2006
NFPA 318—2006	Standard for the Protection of Semiconductor Fabrication Facilities	11/22/2006
NFPA 450—2004	Guide for Emergency Medical Services and Systems	11/22/2006
NFPA 484—2006	Standard for Combustible Metals	11/22/2006
NFPA 505—2006	Fire Safety Standard for Powered Industrial Trucks Including Type Designations, Areas of Use, Conversions, Maintenance, and Operations	11/22/2006
NFPA 555—2004	Guide on Methods for Evaluating Potential for Room Flashover	11/22/2006
NFPA 610—2003	Guide for Emergency and Safety Operations at Motorsports Venues	11/22/2006
NFPA 705—2003	Recommended Practice for a Field Flame Test for Textiles and Films	11/22/2006
NFPA 1002—2003	Standard for Fire Apparatus Driver/Operator Professional Qualifications	11/22/2006
NFPA 1021—2003	Standard for Fire Officer Professional Qualifications	11/22/2006
NFPA 1026—P *	Standard for Incident Management Personnel Professional Qualifications	11/22/2006
NFPA 1031—2003	Standard for Professional Qualifications for Fire Inspector and Plan Examiner	11/22/2006
NFPA 1033—2003	Standard for Professional Qualifications for Fire Investigator	11/22/2006
NFPA 1143—2003	Standard for Wildland Fire Management	11/22/2006
NFPA 1620—2003	Recommended Practice for Pre-Incident Planning	11/22/2006
NFPA 1670—2004	Standard on Operations and Training for Technical Search and Rescue Incidents	5/25/2007
NFPA 1963—2003	Standard for Fire Hose Connections	5/25/2007
NFPA 1965—2003	Standard for Fire Hose Appliances	5/25/2007
NFPA 2010—2006	Standard for Fixed Aerosol Fire Extinguishing Systems	11/22/2006
* P Proposed NEW drafts are available from NFPA's Web site—www.nfpa.org or may be obtained from NFPA's Codes and Standards Administration, 1 Batterymarch Park, Quincy, Massachusetts 02269—7471.

Dated: October 3, 2006.

James E. Hill,

Acting Deputy Director.