2026 -- H 7148

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2026

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A N   A C T

RELATING TO HEALTH AND SAFETY -- REHABILITATION BUILDING AND FIRE

CODE FOR EXISTING BUILDINGS AND STRUCTURES

     Introduced By: Representatives Place, Newberry, Nardone, Roberts, Quattrocchi,
Hopkins, Chippendale, and Fascia

     Date Introduced: January 16, 2026

     Referred To: House Municipal Government & Housing

     It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

     SECTION 1. Sections 23-29.1-1 and 23-29.1-3 of the General Laws in Chapter 23-29.1

entitled "Rehabilitation Building and Fire Code for Existing Buildings and Structures" are hereby

amended to read as follows:

     23-29.1-1. Legislative findings and purpose.

     The general assembly finds and declares:

     (1) That there are throughout Rhode Island existing buildings and structures that are vacant

or partially vacant and/or underutilized because rehabilitation of such buildings and structures to

conform to the requirements for new structures under building and fire safety codes, is prohibitively

expensive or impractical;

     (2) That buildings and structures that are vacant or partially vacant constitute a public

safety threat because of a lack of occupancy and a lack of investment in modernization and

maintenance;

     (3) That the presence of vacant and or partially vacant buildings and structures contributes

to blight and or to the loss of economic viability of traditional city, town or village centers;

     (4) That reinvestment in existing buildings and structures will strengthen local tax bases

and provide employment opportunities in construction and building trades;

     (5) That it is the purpose of this chapter to provide a code and regulations for repairing,

rehabilitating, altering, improving, adding to and changing the use of existing buildings and

structures in a manner that assures the health, welfare and safety of occupants and that facilitates

designing improvements to existing buildings and structures to the code in an optimum manner

with a minimum need to for variances; and

     (6) That it is further the purpose of this chapter to provide a single uniform, statewide,

harmonious rehabilitation building code with building code and fire safety code elements

applicable to existing buildings and structures.; and

     (7) That it is further the purpose of this chapter to encourage the continued use and reuse

of existing buildings and structures.

     23-29.1-3. Content, adoption, and administration of the rehabilitation building code

for existing buildings and structures.

     (a) Content. The rehabilitation building and fire code for existing buildings and structures

shall have a building code element and a fire safety code element and shall make provisions for the

repair, renovation, alteration, reconstruction, and change of use of and additions to existing

buildings and structures. The code shall set forth standards for different types of uses; and for

mixed-use buildings and structures, each portion of the building or structure shall be separately

classified as to use. The standards shall include, but not be limited to, standards for building; for

load bearing and structural elements; for plumbing, electrical, and mechanical systems; for fire

resistant walls and for fire suppression, fire alarm, and fire detection systems; for accessibility,

including accessibility for persons with disabilities, means of egress, elevators, escalators,

stairways, doors, ramps, fire alarms, floor surfaces, restrooms and corridors; for vents and

ventilation systems; and for historic buildings; provided however that such standards shall not

affect minimum standards for habitancy.

     (b) Committee on drafting. There shall be a sixteen (16) member committee on drafting

the rehabilitation building and fire code for existing buildings and structures which shall have as

its members the ten (10) voting members of the joint committee, the state fire marshal, the state

building code commissioner, a representative of grow smart RI appointed by the chairperson of

grow smart RI, a representative of the Rhode Island builders association appointed by the president

of the Rhode Island builders association, a representative of the governor’s commission on

disabilities, appointed by the chairperson of the governor’s commission on disabilities, and an

historical preservation architect appointed by the executive director of the Rhode Island historical

preservation and heritage commission. The executive secretary of the joint committee shall serve

as secretary of the committee on drafting and be a nonvoting member of the committee. It shall be

the duty of the joint committee to develop a rehabilitation building and fire code for existing

buildings and structures, which shall have an element pertaining to fire safety and an element

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pertaining to building standards, and to recommend said rehabilitation building and fire code for

consideration by the joint committee. The committee on drafting shall terminate upon an

affirmative vote of the joint committee to recommend the rehabilitation building and fire code for

existing buildings and structures for adoption by the building code standards committee and the

fire safety code board of appeal and review.

     (c) Adoption. The building code element shall be effective upon adoption by the building

code standards committee pursuant to § 23-27.3-100.1.3 and the fire safety code element shall be

effective upon adoption by the fire safety code board of appeal and review pursuant to § 23-28.3-

3. Public hearings required by chapter 35 of title 42 for the adoption, amendment, or revision of the

rehabilitation building and fire code for existing buildings and structures and each of the elements

thereof shall be conducted by the joint committee.

     (d) Administration. Except as set forth in this chapter, the building code element shall be

administered as a building code in accordance with the provisions of chapter 27.3 of this title, the

fire safety code element shall be administered as a fire safety code by the division of fire safety in

accordance with the provisions of chapter 28.2 of this title.

     (e) Applicability to residential dwellings. Notwithstanding any provision of law, rule, or

regulation to the contrary, the rehabilitation building and fire code for existing buildings and

structures shall apply to existing residential dwellings for one, two (2), or three (3) families. Any

provision of law, rule, or regulation that expressly excludes one family, two (2) family, or three (3)

family residential dwellings from the applicability of the rehabilitation building and fire code is

hereby repealed.

     SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.

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EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N   A C T

RELATING TO HEALTH AND SAFETY -- REHABILITATION BUILDING AND FIRE

CODE FOR EXISTING BUILDINGS AND STRUCTURES

***

     This act would expand the Rhode Island rehabilitation and fire code to include existing

one, two, and three family homes, removing their current exclusion and promoting the continued

use and reuse of existing residential buildings.

     This act would take effect upon passage.

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