Title
Consider adopting Ordinance No. 3489, amending the Code of Ordinances Chapter 22 Buildings and Building Regulations, Article IV Electrical Standards adopting the 2017 Edition of the National Electric Code with local amendments; and take appropriate action.
Body
BACKGROUND:
The City adopted the 2014 edition of the National Electric Code (NEC) in December of 2015. Since that time the 2017 edition of the NEC has been published and subsequently adopted by the State of Texas effective September 1st of 2017. The North Central Texas Council of Governments (NCTCOG) has since created a set of standardized regional amendments that the City has incorporated into its proposed ordinance. In order to stay current and remain in compliance with State law, staff has put forth Ordinance 3489, more commonly referred to as the 2017 edition of the NEC with NCTCOG regional amendments for consideration.
DISCUSSION:
The single biggest change with this adoption of ordinance 3489 is the State of Texas is now regulating and licensing Electricians instead of each individual municipality. This change is consistent with how the State has been regulating other trade contractors and technicians such as those in the Plumbing, HVAC and Irrigation industries. Many municipalities are trying to replace the lost revenue source from licensing those trades, however Farmers Branch was proactive several years ago and again recently by raising our trade permit fees to offset this lost revenue when the State made a similar move with Plumbing industry. There will not be any negative financial impact with the adoption of ordinance 3489. There are six total NCTCOG recommended changes in the proposed ordinance that are extremely minor in nature that primarily deal with on-site supervision of work, recognizing State of Texas registered professional engineers primarily engaged in the practice of electrical design and recognizing National Testing Laboratories.
RECOMMENDATION:
City Administration re...
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