S-1333.1

SUBSTITUTE SENATE BILL 5491

BySenate Local Government, Land Use & Tribal Affairs (originally sponsored by Senators Salomon, Shewmake, Frame, Liias, and Stanford)

AN ACT Relating to allowing for residential buildings of a certain height to be served by a single exit under certain conditions; amending RCW 19.27.042; adding a new section to chapter 19.27 RCW; and providing an expiration date.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1. A new section is added to chapter 19.27 RCW to read as follows:

(1) The legislative body of a county or city, in exercising the authority provided under RCW 19.27.060 to amend the code enumerated in RCW 19.27.031(1)(b), may adopt amendments that allow for up to five stories of group R-2 occupancy to be served by a single exit under the following conditions:

(a) The building does not have more than six stories above grade plane;

(b) The building does not contain a boarding house;

(c) The building does not contain a state licensed facility as defined in WAC 246-314-010;

(d) The building does not have more than four dwellings on any floor;

(e) The building is constructed with not less than one-hour fire-resistive construction and is also equipped throughout with an automatic sprinkler system in accordance with section 903.3.1.1 of the International Building Code. Residential-type sprinklers must be used in all habitable spaces in each dwelling unit;

(f) There are not more than two single exit stairway conditions on the same property for buildings four stories tall or higher;

(g) An exterior stairway or interior exit stairway is provided. The interior exit stairway, including any related exit passageway, must be pressurized in accordance with section 909.20 of the International Building Code. Doors in the stairway must swing into the interior exit stairway regardless of the occupant load served, provided that doors from the interior exit stairway to the building exterior are permitted to swing in the direction of exit travel;

(h) A corridor separates each dwelling unit entry/exit door from the door to an interior exit stairway, including any related exit passageway, on each floor. Dwelling unit doors must not open directly into an interior exit stairway. Dwelling unit doors are permitted to open directly into an exterior stairway;

(i) There are not more than 20 feet of travel to the exit stairway from the entry/exit door of any dwelling unit;

(j) Travel distance measured in accordance with section 1017 of the International Building Code does not exceed 125 feet;

(k) The exit does not terminate in an egress court where the court depth exceeds the court width unless it is possible to exit in either direction to the public way;

(l) Elevators are pressurized in accordance with section 909.21 of the International Building Code or open into elevator lobbies that comply with section 713.14 of the International Building Code. Where approved by the building official, natural ventilation is permitted to be substituted for pressurization where the ventilation would prevent the accumulation of smoke or toxic gases;

(m)(i) Other occupancies are permitted in the same building provided they comply with all other requirements of this subsection (1). Except as provided in (m)(ii) of this subsection, other occupancies must not communicate with the group R occupancy portion of the building or with the single-exit stairway;

(ii) Parking garages and occupied roofs accessory to the group R occupancy are permitted to communicate with the exit stairway;

(n) The exit serving the group R occupancy does not discharge through any other occupancy, including an accessory parking garage; and

(o) There are no openings within 10 feet of unprotected openings into the stairway other than required exit doors having a one-hour fire-resistance rating.

(2)(a) A city that intends to adopt amendments under subsection (1) of this section must meet the following criteria prior to adoption:

(i) The city is served by a municipal fire department or fire district; and

(ii) The city does not have a current restriction on development due to lack of fire flow capacity as set forth in WAC 246-290-221. Minimum fire flow capacity must be at least 750 gallons per minute for 60 minutes, as set forth in WAC 246-293-640.

(b) Nothing in this subsection precludes a city from making a determination that the city does not have appropriate fire apparatus or hydrant networks to serve single stairwell buildings.

(3) This section expires July 1, 2026.

Sec. 2. RCW 19.27.042 and 1991 c 139 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) Effective January 1, 1992, the legislative authorities of cities and counties may adopt an ordinance or resolution to exempt from state building code requirements buildings whose character of use or occupancy has been changed in order to provide housing for indigent persons. The ordinance or resolution allowing the exemption shall include the following conditions:

(a) The exemption is limited to existing buildings located in this state;

(b) Any code deficiencies to be exempted pose no threat to human life, health, or safety;

(c) The building or buildings exempted under this section are owned or administered by a public agency or nonprofit corporation; and

(d) The exemption is authorized for no more than five years on any given building. An exemption for a building may be renewed if the requirements of this section are met for each renewal.

(2) By January 1, 1992, the state building code council shall adopt by rule, guidelines for cities and counties exempting buildings under subsection (1) of this section.

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