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Bill

S 2948

Provides that only registered design professionals or employees with certified fire escape contractors are authorized to install, service, repair, inspect, and maintain fire escapes.*

2024-2025 Regular Session Introduced by Troy Singleton and 2 co-sponsors

Only registered design professionals or employees of certified fire escape contractors may install, service, inspect, or maintain fire escapes and exterior stairways.

Received in the Assembly, Referred to Assembly Housing Committee
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Bill Summary · S 2948

Summary — S 2948

Provides that only registered design professionals or employees of certified fire escape contractors may install, service, repair, inspect, and maintain fire escapes and exterior stairways.

Purpose

To raise minimum professional qualifications and create a certification framework for persons and firms that work on fire escapes and exterior stairways, and to require those qualified persons to perform compliance inspections needed for certificates of occupancy and certain municipal enforcement roles.

Key provisions

  • Limits who may install, service, repair, inspect, or maintain fire escapes and exterior stairways to:
    • registered design professionals (defined to include structural engineers and architects), or
    • employees of fire escape contractors certified under rules adopted by the Commissioner of Community Affairs.
  • Requires that compliance inspections of fire escapes and exterior stairways — when needed to issue a certificate of occupancy under the State Uniform Construction Code / fire code — must be conducted by a structural engineer, an architect, or an employee of a certified fire escape inspection company.
  • For municipal appointments (civil service and non‑civil service) of construction or subcode officials responsible for enforcing the fire code as it relates to fire escapes and exterior stairways, requires that the official be a structural engineer, an architect, or an employee with a certified fire escape inspection company.
  • Adds or clarifies statutory definitions, including:
    • “Fire escape” (an additional egress on existing buildings where an exterior stair cannot be provided within lot lines),
    • “Fire escape contractor” (person or business conducting fire escape work; must be a licensed design professional or employ certified fire escape contractors),
    • “Registered design professional” (architect or licensed professional engineer).
  • Requires the Commissioner of Community Affairs to adopt regulations establishing certification standards for fire escape inspection companies and to create a certified “Fire Escape Contractor” classification.
  • Technical and drafting revisions: committee floor amendments added architects to the permitted professionals and clarified treatment of fire escapes in existing definitions.
  • Floor amendments clarified that fire escapes and exterior stairways are not considered “fire protection equipment” for certain statutory lists and removed earlier amendments to P.L.1975, c.217.

Who is affected

  • Building owners/operators (especially owners of older multi‑story or multi‑family buildings with exterior fire escapes) — will face new inspection and compliance requirements and may need to engage certified professionals.
  • Structural engineers and architects — explicitly authorized to perform required work and inspections.
  • Fire escape contractors and their employees — will be subject to a new certification regime and limitations on who may perform fire escape work.
  • Municipal construction/subcode offices — appointment qualifications and enforcement roles for certain officials are narrowed.
  • Commissioner of Community Affairs — must promulgate implementing regulations.

Procedural status and timeline

  • Introduced March 11, 2024 (Senate Community & Urban Affairs). Committee reported with amendments May 6, 2024.
  • Senate amendment (Ruiz) adopted Oct 28, 2024 (voice).
  • Passed Senate Feb 25, 2025 (30–8).
  • Read twice and referred to Assembly (Finance) Sept 30, 2025; received in the Assembly and referred to the Assembly Housing Committee.
  • Companion bill: A4266.

Potential impacts (practical considerations)

  • Likely raises professional oversight and uniformity of fire escape inspections and repairs, potentially improving safety and reducing hazardous inspections/repairs by unqualified parties.
  • Could increase compliance costs for property owners (fees for licensed professionals, certification costs).
  • May require administrative rulemaking by the Department of Community Affairs to establish certification procedures, timelines, and fees before full implementation.

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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