Summary of SB 2470 (Session 114) — Tennessee
This bill proposes a comprehensive reorganization of oversight for certain safety boards and related rulemaking responsibilities, transferring oversight from the Department of Labor and Workforce Development to the Department of Commerce and Insurance, and creating new boiler and amusement-device rule structures.
Sections at a glance
- Transfers and reassignments of boards and duties
- Creation of new unified definitions and regulatory framework
- Establishment and governance of boiler rules
- Revisions to existing boiler and amusement-device safety provisions
- Consolidation and removal of an existing chapter
Main purpose and intent
- The bill moves the supervision of two specific boards—the Board of Boiler Rules and the Elevator and Amusement Device Safety Board—from the Department of Labor and Workforce Development to the Department of Commerce and Insurance.
- It replaces a prior boiler-focused and amusement-device framework with new, consolidated regulatory structures under the commerce and insurance department, while preserving core safety objectives for elevators, dumbwaiters, escalators, aerial tramways, moving walks, and amusement devices.
Key provisions and changes
1) Oversight transfers
- Adds Elevator and Amusement Device Safety Board and Board of Boiler Rules as statutory entities under the structure of the Tennessee Code, aligning their oversight with the Department of Commerce and Insurance (under the “Department” and “Commissioner” definitions in the proposed framework).
- Section 2 and Section 3 remove the elevator/amusement board and the boiler-board references from the prior department’s oversight, aligning them with the new department structure.
2) New regulatory chapter for amusement devices and related equipment
- Section 5 creates a comprehensive, new, Tennessee-specific chapter (62-14-101 et seq.) focused on:
- Definitions for amusement devices, aerial passenger tramways, moving walks, and related equipment.
- Rules governing operation, construction, installation, alteration, maintenance, inspection, and licensing of elevator, dumbwaiter, escalator, aerial tramway, moving walk, and amusement-device safety.
- Licensing, inspections, permits, and penalties tied to compliance with the board’s safety rules and federal/industry standards (e.g., ASME, ASTM, NAARSO, AIMS, ACCT).
3) Boiler rules and boiler-board creation (62-15)
- Section 7 creates the Board of Boiler Rules within the Department of Commerce and Insurance (62-15-101 et seq.), consisting of five members with defined representatives (owners/users, boiler manufacturers, insurance, a mechanical engineer, and boilermaker/operating engineer).
- Establishes definitions, rulemaking authority, and the phased applicability for new and existing boilers, including exemptions and municipal-date conformity timelines.
- Sets up definitions for boilers, miniature boilers, autoclaves, and related terms; requires compliance with American Society of Mechanical Engineers Boiler Construction Code, with phased-in compatibility for existing installations.
- Outlines chief inspector and deputy inspector roles, examination requirements, and enforcement authority.
4) Structural code changes
- Title 68, Chapter 121 (which previously housed boiler/elevator/amusement device regulations) is removed as a standalone chapter (per Section 4), with boiler-rule mechanics migrated to the new boiler-board structure (62-15) and amusement/elevator-device rules moved to the 62-14 series under the new department arrangement.
5) Definitions and cross-references
- Section 1 and 3 insert and replace references to the elevator/amusement device safety board and board of boiler rules in the 4-3-1304(a) and 4-29-249(a) contexts, ensuring consistent cross-referencing with the new boards.
Who is affected
- Elevators, dumbwaiters, escalators, aerial passenger tramways, moving walks, and amusement devices in Tennessee, including owners, operators, inspectors, and municipalities.
- Boilermakers, manufacturers, insurers, and facilities with boilers (new and existing) will be subject to the new Board of Boiler Rules rules and inspections.
- Local governments and building authorities interact with the new regulatory framework through the Department of Commerce and Insurance.
Procedural and timeline aspects
- The bill establishes phased adoption for new boiler rules (e.g., existing installations must conform within 12 months after first rules become effective; amendments to rules are permissive immediately and mandatory after 12 months).
- Boiler inspections and permit regimes (including fees and reporting) are reorganized under the boiler-board framework with established schedules for construction permits, inspections, and operating permits.
- The amusement devices provisions introduce annual inspections, qualified inspectors, and permit requirements with penalties for non-compliance.
Notes
- The bill contains extensive technical definitions and cross-references to ASME, ASTM, NAARSO, AIMS, and ACCT standards.
- It retains a clear public-safety objective: ensuring safe operation of elevators, amusement devices, and boilers while consolidating regulatory authority within the Department of Commerce and Insurance.
This summary focuses on the substantive changes and potential impact on regulation, inspections, and safety oversight. If you’d like, I can tailor this to a specific stakeholder (e.g., boiler manufacturers, municipal regulators, or amusement-device operators) or provide a side-by-side comparison with current law.
