H. B. 2986


(By Delegate Beach)

[Introduced February 13, 2003; referred to the

Committee on the Judiciary then Finance.]
A BILL to amend and reenact section seven, article three, chapter twenty-one of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to the operation of steam boilers and testing and licensing requirements prescribed by the commissioner of labor.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section seven, article three, chapter twenty-one of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 3. SAFETY AND WELFARE OF EMPLOYEES.
§21-3-7. Regulation of operation of steam boilers.

(a) Any person owning or operating a steam boiler carrying more than fifteen pounds pressure per square inch or more and having less than one thousand square feet of heating surface in the aggregate (except boilers on railroad locomotives subject to inspection under federal laws, portable boilers used for agricultural purposes, boilers on automobiles, boilers of steam fire engines brought into the state for temporary use in times of emergency for the purpose of checking conflagrations, boilers used in private residences which are used solely for residential purposes, any sectional boilers, small portable boilers commonly used in the oil and gas industry about their wells and tool houses, and boilers under the jurisdiction of the United States) in this state, including boilers located in theaters, hospitals, educational institutions, hotels and motels, shall first be tested in order to obtain a permit or license to operate a steam boiler from the commissioner of labor, or from an inspector working under his or her jurisdiction.
(b) Applications for permits to operate a steam boiler must be accompanied by a sworn statement made by the owner or operator of such the boiler, setting forth the condition of the boiler and its appurtenances at which time, if the facts disclosed by such the statement meet the safety requirements established under this article, the commissioner of labor shall issue a temporary permit, which shall be valid until such the boiler has been inspected by a boiler inspector authorized by the state commissioner of labor; thereupon, if the boiler meets the safety requirements established under this article, the commissioner of labor shall issue an annual permit to operate such the steam boiler: Provided, That boilers which are insured by an insurance company operating in this state and which are inspected by such the insurance company's boiler inspector shall not be are not subject to inspection by the state department division of labor, during any twelve months' period during which an inspection is made by the insurance company's boiler inspector.
(c) The commissioner of labor or state boiler inspector shall have has the authority to inspect steam boilers in this state and to establish standards for the testing and licensing of any person who operates and maintains equipment that is essential to power generation, heating, ventilation, humidity control and air conditioning in industrial plants, institutions and other building complexes. To carry out the provisions of this section, the commissioner of labor shall prescribe rules and regulations under which boilers may be constructed and operated, according to their class, including all boilers, pipes, stationary or locomotive engines, or any other containers, tanks vessels under pressure of water, liquid, gas or steam. The rules must provide for the testing and licensing of persons who operate and maintain boiler steam machinery or any equipment that is essential to power generation, heating, ventilation, humidity control and air conditioning in industrial plants, institutions and other building complexes. The rules must also provide that a power engineer, boiler operator, fireman, technician or chief operating engineer must operate, repair and maintain in a responsible manner as a technical expert all equipment or machinery consisting of steam boilers, pressure vessels, internal combustion engines, turbines, refrigeration and air conditioning equipment, generators, motors, pumps, compressors, distillation units and similar equipment. The commissioner of labor shall be is authorized to revoke any permit or license to operate a steam boiler if the rules prescribed by the commissioner of labor, or his or her authorized representative, are violated or if a condition shall prevail prevails which is hazardous to the life and health of persons operating or employed at or around the boiler. Any person or corporation who shall operate operates a steam boiler for which a permit or license is necessary under the provisions of this section, without first obtaining such the permit or license to operate a steam boiler, shall be is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than one hundred dollars nor more than five hundred dollars. Every day a steam boiler requiring a permit or license to operate is operated without such the permit or license shall be is considered a separate offense.
(d) Any person who holds a permit required by the provisions of this section, on the effective date of this amendment to the section, and any person who has at least one years' experience or at least two thousand eighty hours experience in the same field, with documentation establishing this experience, shall be granted a permit or license without the necessity of testing required by the provisions of subsection (a) of this section.
(e) The commissioner may charge such fee as he the commissioner determines reasonable for the inspection of boilers by the department division of labor boiler inspector of the commissioner's authorized boiler inspection agency, for the processing of inspection reports from insurance companies, for testing and issuing annual permits and license to operate boilers and for commissioning insurance company boiler inspectors. Such The fees shall be established by a rule promulgated in accordance with the provisions of chapter twenty-nine-a of this code. No fee shall may be charged for the inspection of boilers used on mobile equipment or vehicles used for occasional entertainment or display purposes.

NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to require that persons who operate or maintain steam boilers and equipment be tested and licensed by the Commissioner of Labor. A "Grandfather Clause" is provided for persons with at least one years' experience or 2080 hours experience.

Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would be added.