[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 71 (Friday, April 13, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 18632-18634]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-7078]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Institute of Standards and Technology


National Fire Codes: Request for Proposals for Revision of Codes 
and Standards

AGENCY: National Institute of Standards and Technology, Commerce.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) proposes to 
revise some of its fire safety codes and standards and requests 
proposals from the public to amend existing or begin the process of 
developing new NFPA fire safety codes and standards. The purpose of 
this request is to increase public participation in the system used by 
NFPA to develop its codes and standards. The publication of this notice 
of request for proposals by the National Institute of Standards and 
Technology (NIST) on behalf of NFPA is being undertaken as a public 
service; NIST does not necessarily endorse, approve, or recommend any 
of the standards referenced in the notice.
    The NFPA process provides ample opportunity for public 
participation in the development of its codes and standards. All NFPA 
codes and standards are revised and updated every three to five years 
in Revision Cycles that begin twice each year and that takes 
approximately two years to complete. Each Revision Cycle proceeds 
according to a published schedule that includes final dates for all 
major events in the process. The process contains five basic steps that 
are followed both for developing new documents as well as revising 
existing documents. These steps are: Calling for Proposals; Publishing 
the Proposals in the Report on Proposals (ROP); Calling for Comments on 
the Committee's disposition of the proposals and these Comments are 
published in the Report on Comments (ROC); having a Technical Report 
Session at the NFPA Annual Meeting; and finally, the Standards Council 
Consideration and Issuance of documents.

    Note: Under new rules effective Fall 2005, anyone wishing to 
make Amending Motions on the Technical Committee Reports (ROP and 
ROC) must signal their intention by submitting a Notice of Intent to 
Make a Motion by the Deadline stated in the ROC.

[[Page 18633]]

Certified motions will then be posted on the NFPA website. Documents 
that receive notice of proper Amending Motions (Certified Amending 
Motions) will be presented for action at the Annual Association 
Technical Meeting. Documents that receive no motions will be 
forwarded directly to the Standards Council for action on issuance.

    For more information on these new rules and for up-to-date 
information on schedules and deadlines for processing NFPA Documents, 
check the NFPA Web site at http://www.nfpa.org or contact NFPA Codes 
and Standards Administration.

DATES: Interested persons may submit proposals on or before the dates 
listed with the standards.

ADDRESSES: Casey C. Grant, Secretary, Standards Council, NFPA, 1 
Batterymarch Park, Quincy, Massachusetts 02269-9101.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Casey C. Grant, Secretary, Standards 
Council, at above address, (617) 770-3000.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) develops building, 
fire, and electrical safety codes and standards. Federal agencies 
frequently use these codes and standards as the basis for developing 
Federal regulations concerning fire safety. Often, the Office of the 
Federal Register approves the incorporation by reference of these 
standards under 5 U.S.C. 552(a) and 1 CFR Part 51.
    When a Technical Committee begins the development of a new or 
revised NFPA code or standard, it enters one of two Revision Cycles 
available each year. The Revision Cycle begins with the Call for 
Proposals, that is, a public notice asking for any interested persons 
to submit specific written proposals for developing or revising the 
Document. The Call for Proposals is published in a variety of 
publications. Interested parties have approximately twenty weeks to 
respond to the Call for Proposals.
    Following the Call for Proposals period, the Technical Committee 
holds a meeting to consider and accept, reject or revise, in whole or 
in part, all the submitted Proposals. The committee may also develop 
its own Proposals. A document known as the Report on Proposals, or ROP, 
is prepared containing all the Public Proposals, the Technical 
Committees' action and each Proposal, as well as all Committee-
generated Proposals. The ROP is then submitted for the approval of the 
Technical Committee by a formal written ballot. If the ROP does not 
receive approval by a two-thirds vote calculated in accordance with 
NFPA rules, the Report is returned to the committee for further 
consideration and is not published. If the necessary approval is 
received, the ROP is published in a compilation of Reports on Proposals 
issued by NFPA twice yearly for public review and comment, and the 
process continues to the next step.
    The Reports on Proposals are sent automatically free of charge to 
all who submitted proposals and each respective committee member, as 
well as anyone else who requests a copy. All ROP's are also available 
for free downloading at http://www.nfpa.org.
    Once the ROP becomes available, there is a 60-day comment period 
during which anyone may submit a Public Comment on the proposed changes 
in the ROP. The committee then reconvenes at the end of the comment 
period and acts on all Comments.
    As before, a two-thirds approval vote by written ballot of the 
eligible members of the committee is required for approval of actions 
on the Comments. All of this information is complied into a second 
Report, called the Report on Comments (ROC), which, like the ROP, is 
published and made available for public review for a seven-week period.
    The process of public input and review does not end with the 
publication of the ROP and ROC. Following the completion of the 
Proposal and Comment periods, there is yet a further opportunity for 
debate and discussion through the Technical Report Sessions that take 
place at the NFPA Annual Meeting.
    The Technical Report Session provides an opportunity for the final 
Technical Committee Report (i.e., the ROP and ROC) on each proposed new 
or revised code or standard to be presented to the NFPA membership for 
the debate and consideration of motions to amend the Report. Before 
making an allowable motion at a Technical Report Session, the intended 
maker of the motion must file, in advance of the session, and within 
the published deadline, a Notice of Intent to Make a Motion. A Motions 
Committee appointed by the Standards Council then reviews all notices 
and certifies all amending motions that are proper. Only these 
Certified Amending Motions, together with certain allowable Follow-Up 
Motions (that is, motions that have become necessary as a result of 
previous successful amending motions) will be allowed at the Technical 
Report Session.
    For more information on dates/locations of NFPA Technical Committee 
meetings and NFPA Annual Technical Report Sessions, check the NFPA Web 
site at: http://www.nfpa.org/itemDetail.asp?categoryID=822&itemID=22818.
    The specific rules for the types of motions that can be made and 
who can make them are set forth in NFPA's Regulation Governing 
Committee Projects which should always be consulted by those wishing to 
bring an issue before the membership at a Technical Report Session.

Request for Proposals

    Interested persons may submit proposals, supported by written data, 
views, or arguments to Casey C. Grant, Secretary, Standards Council, 
NFPA, 1 Batterymarch Park, Quincy, Massachusetts 02269-9101. Proposals 
should be submitted on forms available from the NFPA Codes and 
Standards Administration Office or on NFPA's Web site at http://www.nfpa.org.
    Each person must include his or her name and address, identify the 
document and give reasons for the proposal. Proposals received before 
or by 5 p.m. local time on the closing date indicated would be acted on 
by the Committee. The NFPA will consider any proposal that it receives 
on or before the date listed with the code or standard.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                             Proposal
       Document--edition              Document name        closing date
------------------------------------------------------------------------
NFPA 13--2007.................  Standard for the               10/5/2007
                                 Installation of
                                 Sprinkler Systems.
NFPA 13D--2007................  Standard for the               10/5/2007
                                 Installation of
                                 Sprinkler Systems in
                                 One- and Two-Family
                                 Dwellings and
                                 Manufactured Homes.
NFPA 13R--2007................  Standard for the               10/5/2007
                                 Installation of
                                 Sprinkler Systems in
                                 Residential Occupancies
                                 up to and Including
                                 Four Stories in Height.
NFPA 14--2007.................  Standard for the               5/25/2007
                                 Installation of
                                 Standpipes and Hose
                                 Systems.
NFPA 24--2007.................  Standard for the               10/5/2007
                                 Installation of Private
                                 Fire Service Mains and
                                 Their Appurtenances.

[[Page 18634]]

 
NFPA 52--2006.................  Vehicular Fuel Systems         5/25/2007
                                 Code.
NFPA 53--2004.................  Recommended Practice on        5/25/2007
                                 Materials, Equipment
                                 and Systems Used in
                                 Oxygen-Enriched
                                 Atmospheres.
NFPA 55--2005.................  Standard for the               5/25/2007
                                 Storage, Use, and
                                 Handling of Compressed
                                 Gases and Cryogenic
                                 Fluids in Portable and
                                 Stationary Containers,
                                 Cylinders, and Tanks.
NFPA 72--2007.................  National Fire Alarm            11/2/2007
                                 Code[supreg].
NFPA 82--2004.................  Standard on Incinerators       5/25/2007
                                 and Waste and Linen
                                 Handling Systems and
                                 Equipment.
NFPA 99--2005.................  Standard for Health Care      11/26/2007
                                 Facilities.
NFPA 99B--2005................  Standard for Hypobaric        11/26/2007
                                 Facilities.
NFPA 99C--2005................  Standard on Gas and           11/26/2007
                                 Vacuum Systems.
NFPA 101A--2007...............  Guide on Alternative          11/26/2007
                                 Approaches to Life
                                 Safety.
NFPA 150--2007................  Standard on Fire and           5/25/2007
                                 Life Safety in Animal
                                 Housing Facilities.
NFPA 211-2006.................  Standard for Chimneys,         5/25/2007
                                 Fireplaces, Vents, and
                                 Solid Fuel-Burning
                                 Appliances.
NFPA 225--2005................  Model Manufactured Home        5/25/2007
                                 Installation Standard.
NFPA 255--2006................  Standard Method of Test       11/26/2007
                                 of Surface Burning
                                 Characteristics of
                                 Building Materials.
NFPA 291--2007................  Recommended Practice for       10/5/2007
                                 Fire Flow Testing and
                                 Marking of Hydrants.
NFPA 501--2005................  Standard on Manufactured       5/25/2007
                                 Housing.
NFPA 501A--2005...............  Standard for Fire Safety       5/25/2007
                                 Criteria for
                                 Manufactured Home
                                 Installations, Sites,
                                 and Communities.
NFPA 750--2006................  Standard on Water Mist         5/30/2008
                                 Fire Protection Systems.
NFPA 850--2005................  Recommended Practice for       5/25/2007
                                 Fire Protection for
                                 Electric Generating
                                 Plants and High Voltage
                                 Direct Current
                                 Converter Stations.
NFPA 851--2005................  Recommended Practice for       5/25/2007
                                 Fire Protection for
                                 Hydroelectric
                                 Generating Plants.
NFPA 914--2007................  Code for Fire Protection       5/25/2007
                                 of Historic Structures.
NFPA 1201--2004...............  Standard for Providing        11/26/2007
                                 Emergency Services to
                                 the Public.
NFPA 1250--2004...............  Recommended Practice in       11/26/2007
                                 Emergency Service
                                 Organization Risk
                                 Management.
NFPA 1670--2004...............  Standard on Operations         5/25/2007
                                 and Training for
                                 Technical Search and
                                 Rescue Incidents.
NFPA 1710--2004...............  Standard for the              11/26/2007
                                 Organization and
                                 Deployment of Fire
                                 Suppression Operations,
                                 Emergency Medical
                                 Operations, and Special
                                 Operations to the
                                 Public by Career Fire
                                 Departments.
NFPA 1720--2004...............  Standard for the             11/26/2007
                                 Organization and
                                 Deployment of Fire
                                 Suppression Operations,
                                 Emergency Medical
                                 Operations and Special
                                 Operations to the
                                 Public by Volunteer
                                 Fire Departments.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
* P = Proposed NEW drafts are available from NFPA's Web site--http://www.nfpa.org or may be obtained from NFPA's Codes and Standards
  Administration, 1 Batterymarch Park, Quincy, MA 02269.


    Dated: April 5, 2007.
William Jeffrey,
Director.
 [FR Doc. E7-7078 Filed 4-12-07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-13-P