Sec. 29-200. Standards concerning certain lifts and elevators. Variations or exemptions. Installation of lifts and elevators. Application. Appeal.

      Sec. 29-200. Standards concerning certain lifts and elevators. Variations or exemptions. Installation of lifts and elevators. Application. Appeal. (a) The State Building Inspector and the Codes and Standards Committee, with the approval of the Commissioner of Public Safety shall adopt standards as referenced in the State Building Code concerning the installation, operation, maintenance and use of inclined stairway chairlifts, vertical wheelchair or incline lifts and limited use, limited access elevators. The State Building Inspector and said committee may adopt, by reference, standards concerning inclined stairway chairlifts, vertical wheelchair or incline lifts and limited use, limited access elevators, as set forth by the American National Standards Institute.

      (b) Any person, agent of the state, municipality or any other political subdivision of the state may apply to the State Building Inspector to vary or set aside standards adopted under the provisions of subsection (a) of this section. Any variation of or exemption from any provision of such standards shall be permitted only when approved by the State Building Inspector and the executive director of the Office of Protection and Advocacy for Persons with Disabilities acting jointly. The State Building Inspector, within seven days of receipt of any such application, shall forward a copy of such application to said executive director, who shall, within thirty days of receipt, review the application, and acting jointly with the State Building Inspector, render a decision to accept or reject the application in whole or in part. The State Building Inspector and said executive director may approve a variation of or exemption from any such standard or specification when they jointly determine that it would not be feasible or would unreasonably complicate the construction, alteration or repair in question. Such determination shall be in writing, and if it sets aside any such standard or specification, a copy of such determination shall be sent to said executive director.

      (c) Such lifts and elevators may be installed (1) in existing buildings principally used for meeting, gathering or assembling by any civic, religious, fraternal or charitable organization, (2) in residential buildings designed to be occupied by one or two families, (3) in new buildings for which a building permit application has been filed on or after October 1, 2004, in accordance with the State Building Code, and (4) in other existing buildings and structures only if the executive director of the Office of Protection and Advocacy for Persons with Disabilities and the State Building Inspector jointly approve such installation. An application for the installation of such lift or elevator in other buildings and structures under subdivision (4) of this subsection shall be submitted to the State Building Inspector who shall, within seven days of receipt of any such application, forward a copy of such application to said executive director, who shall, within thirty days of receipt, review the application, and acting jointly with the State Building Inspector, render a decision to accept or reject the application in whole or in part.

      (d) Any person aggrieved by any such decision of the State Building Inspector and the executive director of the Office of Protection and Advocacy for Persons with Disabilities may appeal to the Codes and Standards Committee within thirty days after such decision has been rendered.

      (e) Any person aggrieved by any ruling of the Codes and Standards Committee may appeal therefrom to the Superior Court in accordance with section 4-183.

      (P.A. 84-152, S. 1, 3; P.A. 85-205, S. 1, 2; P.A. 89-144, S. 11; P.A. 91-206; P.A. 97-118, S. 2; P.A. 04-237, S. 5.)

      History: P.A. 85-205 expanded the types of buildings in which lifts may be installed to include one or two family residential buildings and other approved buildings; P.A. 89-144 substituted the office of protection and advocacy for persons with disabilities for the office of protection and advocacy for handicapped and developmentally disabled persons; P.A. 91-206 divided the Sec. into Subsecs. adding new provisions in Subsec. (a) requiring that state building inspector and codes and standards committee, with the approval of commissioner, adopt regulations, and adding Subsec. (b) concerning procedure re application for variations or exemptions from standards in regulations, Subsec. (c) concerning procedure re application for lift installation in other buildings and structures under Subdiv. (3), and Subsecs. (d) and (e) concerning provisions for appeal; P.A. 97-118 amended Subsec. (a) to add limited use, limited access elevators to types of lifts for which regulations shall be adopted and Subsec. (c) to add such elevators to provisions governing installation of and application for lifts in certain types of buildings; P.A. 04-237 amended Subsec. (a) to eliminate references to adopting regulations, to add provisions re standards as referenced in the State Building Code and to make technical changes, amended Subsec. (b) to eliminate references to regulations and to add reference to standards, and amended Subsec. (c) to limit purview of Subdiv. (1) to "existing" buildings, to insert new Subdiv. (3) authorizing installation of lifts and elevators in new buildings for which a building permit application has been filed on or after October 1, 2004, in accordance with the code, and to renumber existing Subdiv. (3) as Subdiv. (4) and limit purview of said Subdiv. to "existing" buildings and structures, and to make a technical change.