2016 District of Columbia Code
Title 3 - District of Columbia Boards and Commissions. §§ 3-101 - 3-3721
Chapter 11 - Fire Protection Study Commission. §§ 3-1101 - 3-1108
§ 3–1103. Duties.

(a) The Commission shall investigate the issues that affect the safety of the residents of the District of Columbia and recommend legislative schemes for eliminating the hazards of fires.

(b) The Commission shall:

(1) Identify the population groups that are at higher than average risk of death or injury due to residential fires;

(2) Identify the neighborhoods where the residents suffer higher than average risk of death or injury due to fires;

(3) Identify the categories of residential buildings in which the incidence of fire occurs at a rate higher than in other residential buildings;

(4) Identify the causes of these fires; and

(5) Identify categories of buildings that should be required to install sprinkler systems.

(c) The Commission shall examine the appropriateness of the use-group classifications set forth in the Building Code approved pursuant to the Construction Codes Approval and Amendment Act of 1986.

(d) The Commission shall study the feasibility of installing the following configurations of sprinklers:

(1) Hallway and stairwell sprinklers with the extension of a single head into each adjacent room;

(2) Sprinklers throughout the building; or

(3) Other configurations as may appear feasible to the Commission.

(e) Based on the District of Columbia’s fire experience since 1978, the Commission shall make a finding of the percentage of deaths, injuries, and serious fires that would likely be prevented by each configuration of sprinklers.

(f) The Commission shall make a determination of the long-term monetary savings to the District of Columbia government which is likely to result by installing the sprinkler systems that the Commission recommends.

(g) The Commission shall ascertain the advantages and disadvantages of sprinkler systems fashioned from copper, polyvinyl chloride, and polybutylene.

(h) The Commission shall determine if the water system in high-risk residential neighborhoods of the District of Columbia is adequate to supply a residential sprinkler system directly as well as identify the percentage of homes in high-risk neighborhoods with an adequate system to supply water directly to a residential sprinkler system.

(i) The Commission shall:

(1) Identify low-cost alternatives to supplying a residential sprinkler system directly;

(2) Identify funding mechanisms for large-scale installation of residential and institutional sprinkler systems;

(3) Identify specific funding mechanisms for high-risk, low income neighborhoods and cost-containment methods for installation of the residential sprinklers; and

(4) Identify economic disincentives to the installation of residential sprinklers.

(j) The Commission shall identify what changes would have to be made in the local statutes and regulations to allow residential, commercial, and institutional applications of the systems that the Commission recommends.

(k) The Commission shall identify existing programs for youth employment, adult employment, and job training with which a program of large-scale sprinkler installation might be combined to provide multiple benefits to the residents of the District of Columbia.

(l) The Commission shall determine whether the appropriate District of Columbia government agencies have the power and capacity to carry out necessary inspections and to enforce sprinkler requirements that the Commission may recommend.

(m) The Commission shall investigate other matters appropriate for completing the comprehensive report on the feasibility of residential, commercial, and institutional sprinklers in the District of Columbia.

(n) The Commission shall identify and use the services of all concerned District of Columbia residents, businesses, government agencies, and private agencies with expertise and interest in fire protection.

(o) The Commission shall conduct community hearings to receive information related to its mission.

(p) The Commission shall submit to the Council, 1 year after the 1st meeting of the Commission, a comprehensive report setting forth its findings and recommendations.

(Mar. 16, 1985, D.C. Law 5-183, § 4, 32 DCR 841; Mar. 21, 1987, D.C. Law 6-216, § 13(c), 34 DCR 1072; May 10, 1989, D.C. Law 7-231, § 12, 36 DCR 492.)

1981 Ed., § 2-3103.

This section is referenced in § 3-1102.

The “Construction Codes Approval and Amendment Act of 1986,” referred to in subsection (c), is D.C. Law 6-216.