[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 221 (Thursday, November 17, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 69741-69742]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-22786]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Institute of Standards and Technology


National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) Proposes To Revise 
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 safety codes and standards and requests proposals 
from the public to amend existing or begin the process of developing 
new NFPA 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; Calling for Comments on the 
Committee's disposition of the proposals and these Comments are 
published in the Report on Comments; 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 this 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. 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 June 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 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 02269-7471.

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 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 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

[[Page 69742]]

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.
    The specific rules for the types of motions that can be made are 
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.
    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 02269-7471. Proposals 
should be submitted on forms available from the NFPA Codes and 
Standards Administration Office or on NFPA's Web site at 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 codes or standard.

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          Document-edition                             Document title                    Proposal closing date
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NFPA 17--2002.......................  Standard for Dry Chemical Extinguishing Systems  5/26/2006
NFPA 17A--2002......................  Standard for Wet Chemical Extinguishing Systems  5/26/2006
NFPA 59--2004.......................  Utility LP-Gas Plant Code......................  3/3/2006
NFPA 70E--2004......................  Standard for Electrical Safety in the Workplace  9/15/2006
NFPA 115--2003......................  Standard on Laser Fire Protection..............  5/26/2006
NFPA 496--2003......................  Standard for Purged and Pressurized Enclosures   5/26/2006
                                       for Electrical Equipment.
NFPA 497--2004......................  Recommended Practice for the Classification of   5/26/2006
                                       Flammable Liquids, Gases, or Vapors and of
                                       Hazardous (Classified) Locations for
                                       Electrical Installations in Chemical Process
                                       Areas.
NFPA 499--2004......................  Recommended Practice for the Classification of   5/26//2006
                                       Combustible Dusts and of Hazardous
                                       (Classified) Locations for electrical
                                       installations in Chemical Process Areas.
NFPA 730--2006......................  Guide for Premises Security....................  5/26/2006
NFPA 731--2006......................  Standard for the Installation of Electronic      5/26/2006
                                       Premises Security Systems.
NFPA 801--2003......................  Standard for Fire Protection for Facilities      5/26/2006
                                       Handling Radioactive Materials.
NFPA 806--P*........................  Performance Based Standard for Fire Protection   5/26/2006
                                       for Advanced Nuclear Reactor Electric
                                       Generating Plants.
NFPA 921--2004......................  Guide for Fire and Explosion Investigations....  5/26/2006
NFPA 1901--2003.....................  Standard for Automotive Fire Apparatus.........  3/10/2006
NFPA 1962--2003.....................  Standard for the Inspection, Care and Use of     3/10/2006
                                       Fire Hose, Couplings and Nozzles; and the
                                       Service Testing of Fire Hose.
NFPA 1964--2003.....................  Standard for Spray Nozzles.....................  3/10/2006
NFPA 1989--2003.....................  Standard on Breathing Air Quality for Fire and   12//30/2005
                                       Emergency Services Respiratory Protection.
NFPA 1999--2003.....................  Standard on Protective Clothing for Emergency    12/30/2005
                                       Medical Operations.
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*P Proposed NEW drafts are available from NFPA's Web site--www.nfpa.org or may be obtained from NFPA's Codes and
  Standards Administration, 1 Batterymarch Park, Quincy, Massachusetts 02269-7471.


    Dated: November 8, 2005.
William Jeffrey,
Director.
[FR Doc. 05-22786 Filed 11-16-05; 8:45 am]
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