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Committee updates elevator and escalator safety rules to current ANSI/ASME standards
Summary
The committee approved updates to elevator, escalator and moving-walk rules that incorporate updated ANSI/ASME codes, remove duplicative requirements, and streamline approval processes for alternative technologies.
The House Business Committee approved docket 24-3940-2401, a rules package for the Elevator Safety Program that updates by-reference codes to current ANSI/ASME editions, removes duplicative inspection language, and simplifies the process for approving alternative or new technologies.
Justin Touchstone, trades program director for the Building Construction and Real Estate Bureau at the Division of Occupational and Professional Licenses, presented the docket and described broad stakeholder engagement. “This is another rule chapter that went through ZBR. The Board worked to consolidate its rules with consideration on improving public protection and the language for better understanding,” Touchstone said, noting four public hearings and participation from major elevator companies.
The rules update moves several ANSI/ASME references to current editions (for example, ASME A17.1 updates and related standards for platform lifts and inspectors). The docket removes duplicative inspection language governed by the ASME A17.1 code and eliminates several procedural requirements for approving new or alternative technologies—such as specific submission deadlines, extra documentation, mandatory training submissions to the division, and an outside-engineer-approval step—because those topics are addressed within the cited ASME performance-based standards.
Committee members asked about the removal of a training requirement for new technology and about data on elevator/escalator incidents. Touchstone said the training language was duplicative of ASME 17.7 requirements and that the division would consult subject-matter experts to provide incident data if the committee wanted it. Representative Clow asked whether the department purchases code books for staff review; Touchstone said the division maintains office sets for public review at the front counter and will look into providing better public access links.
The committee approved the docket by voice vote. Members discussed modernization and whether prospective compliance or retrofit requirements apply; Touchstone said the division only requires upgrades when a conveyance undergoes a permitted modernization, and it does not require retrofitting thousands of existing conveyances to new codes on adoption.
