Code of Massachusetts Regulations › 527 CMR - BOARD OF FIRE PREVENTION REGULATIONS › Title 527 CMR 12.00 - Massachusetts Electrical Code (Amendments)

Current through Register 1525, July 5, 2024
The Massachusetts Electrical Code (527 CMR 12.00) of the Board
			 of Fire Prevention Regulations (BFPR) shall be the 2020 National Electrical
			 Code (NEC), as published by the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) as
			 NFPA 70 in the form released by vote of the NFPA Standards Council on August 6,
			 2019, including all modifications made by the BFPR and duly promulgated from
			 time to time in the Code of Massachusetts Regulations. Amendments made by NFPA
			 subsequent to this date have no force or effect until and unless reviewed and
			 promulgated by the BFPR.
Informational Note
: The NFPA releases
			 Tentative Interim Amendments (TIAs) from time to time to its standards,
			 including the NEC. True to their title, these changes are tentative, they are
			 of an interim nature, and they amend (in this case) the electrical code. They
			 have not been processed through the NFPA normal standards making process. As of
			 this NEC cycle, these amendments, subsequent to their release, will appear in
			 all renditions of the NEC, both print and electronic, in a form that makes them
			 visually indistinguishable from unamended text.
The NEC version adopted in Massachusetts will be that found in
			 the first printing in book form, and that rendition will include TIAs adopted
			 by the Standards Council at its August 6, 2019 meeting, but no others. Users of
			 this code are advised to consult the front matter on the first page of the NEC
			 for a list of TIAs issued by NFPA, organized by location and specified dates of
			 issuance. Specific information for each will be found on the NFPA website. The
			 NEC version in effect in Massachusetts will usually vary, increasingly over
			 time, from the version amended by NFPA depending on the timing of BFPR actions
			 subsequent to initial promulgation.
Insert the following provisions ahead of the body of the
			 Code:
Rule 1. All installations,
		  repairs, maintenance, and removal of electrical wiring and electrical fixtures
		  used for light, heat, power, signaling and communications purposes in buildings
		  and structures subject to the provisions of M.G.L. c. 143 shall be reasonably
		  safe to persons and property.
Rule
		  2. Conformity of installations, repairs, maintenance, and removal
		  of electrical wiring and electrical fixtures used for light, heat, power,
		  signaling and communications with applicable regulations set forth in the Code,
		  which is hereby filed with the Secretary of the Commonwealth shall be
		  considered as complying with these requirements.
Rule 3. Additions or modifications to an
		  existing installation shall be made in accordance with this Code without
		  bringing the remaining part of the installation into compliance with the
		  requirements of this Code. The installation shall not create a violation of
		  this Code, nor shall it increase the magnitude of an existing
		  violation.
Rule 4. Where an actual
		  hazard exists, the owner of the property shall be notified in writing by the
		  authority enforcing this Code. The notification shall contain specifications of
		  the actual hazard that exists, together with a reference to the rule of this
		  Code that is now in violation. (
See
M.G.L. c. 166,
		  §§ 32 and 33, for enforcement authority.)
Rule 5. References are made in this code to
		  other standards. Those standards, where duly adopted by law or regulation, may
		  be enforced by the appropriate official. They are not considered part of this
		  Code and they are not enforceable under M.G.L. c. 143, § 3L. For
		  Massachusetts Building Code references,
see
Appendix
		  A.
Rule 6. The approving authority
		  may be guided in his approval of specific items of equipment and materials
		  contemplated by the Code, by proof that such equipment and materials have been
		  tested and conform to suitable recognized industry standards.
Rule 7.
							527 CMR
		  12.00 shall be effective on all installations for
		  which a permit has been granted subsequent to December 31, 2019.
Rule 8. In accordance with the provisions of
		  M.G.L. c. 143 § 3L, the permit application form to provide notice of
		  installation of wiring shall be uniform throughout the Commonwealth, and
		  applications shall be filed on the prescribed form. After a permit application
		  has been accepted by an Inspector of Wires appointed pursuant to M.G.L. c. 166,
		  § 32, an electrical permit shall be issued to the person, firm or
		  corporation stated on the permit application. Such entity shall be responsible
		  for the notification of completion of the work as required in M.G.L. c. 143,
		  § 3L.
Permits shall be limited as to the time of ongoing construction
			 activity, and may be deemed by the Inspector of Wires abandoned and invalid if
			 he or she has determined that the authorized work has not commenced or has not
			 progressed during the preceding 12-month period. Upon written application, an
			 extension of time for completion of work shall be permitted for reasonable
			 cause. A permit shall be terminated upon the written request of either the
			 owner or the installing entity stated on the permit
			 application.
Rule 9.
		  Installations, repairs, maintenance, or removals covered by
		  527 CMR
		  12.00 shall also comply with M.G.L. c. 141.
Rule 10. Electrical installations, repairs,
		  maintenance, or removals shall not be concealed or covered from view until
		  inspected by the inspector of wires within and not more than 24 hours for
		  exterior or interior excavations nor more than 72 hours for exterior or
		  interior installations after proper notice to the inspector, Saturdays,
		  Sundays, and holidays excluded.
Rule
		  11. Electrical installations that appear incompatible with GFCI
		  protection as covered in 210.8 Exception of this Code, regardless of the code
		  requirements in effect at the time when the permit as described in Rule 8 was
		  issued, or when the installation was completed, shall be inspected by a
		  qualified person. The inspection shall review all field elements of the
		  branch-circuit equipment grounding return path, and the quality of any
		  field-accessible cord connections if applicable. The inspection shall be
		  documented, subject to audit by the Inspector of Wires, and inspected by him or
		  her as deemed necessary. Installations of listed equipment that, under normal
		  operating conditions, are found to be incompatible with GFCI protective devices
		  as made available by the manufacturer of the circuit protection currently
		  installed shall be excused from providing GFCI protection. If not connected to
		  an individual branch circuit, incompatible equipment shall be directly wired or
		  connected to a single receptacle, and the circuit shall be arranged so required
		  GFCI protection is retained for the remaining outlets. The inspection
		  documentation required by this rule shall constitute the notice required in
		  Rule 8 and no additional notice shall be required for corrections applied
		  accordingly. The location and the date of this determination shall be forwarded
		  to the Department of Fire Services for inclusion in a central registry of such
		  allowances. The report shall also include the appliance manufacturer and model,
		  together with the identity of the GFCI protective device. This rule shall
		  expire on January 1, 2026.
90.2(D)(5). Delete (d) and revise (c) to read
		  as follows:
(c) Are located in legally
		  established easements, rights-of-way, or by other agreements either designated
		  by or recognized by the public service commissions, utility commissions, or
		  other regulatory agencies having jurisdiction for such installations.
Informational Note
: Wiring systems that
			 are maintained by utilities and that operate under this exclusion from coverage
			 by the Massachusetts Electrical Code include, regardless of ownership,
			 luminaires for street and area lighting directly connected to such
			 systems.