Fire Commission adopts multiple administrative bulletins on alarms, EV charging, lockboxes; approves amended minutes and elects new leadership

At its Jan. 22 meeting the San Francisco Fire Commission adopted a package of administrative bulletins and completed routine business including approving amended minutes and electing commission officers.

The commission voted to adopt Administrative Bulletin 2.01, which clarifies fire‑alarm submission requirements and explains when legacy ‘plain old telephone service’ (POTS) copper lines are acceptable for alarm connections. Fire Marshal Ken Coughlin said the change reflects the national shift away from copper POTS and provides operational guidance for plan reviewers and building owners.

Commissioners also approved Administrative Bulletin 4.05, which notifies building owners about a new vendor for keyed locking caps on fire department inlet connections and explains the voluntary retrofit program for existing buildings. The bulletin makes the Knox brand the department's current supplier for locking caps and describes the department’s process for retrofitting lids and registering boxes so keys and audits are trackable.

Administrative Bulletin 4.29, clarifying acceptable fire‑protection approaches for enclosed garages with electric‑vehicle charging, was adopted after discussion. The bulletin explains two principal options for existing garages: (1) upgrade water supply and sprinkler capacity to higher hazard sprinklers, or (2) compartmentalize charging areas with fire‑rated partitions to limit fire spread until suppression resources arrive.

Administrative Bulletin 5.09 formalized a vendor change for key lock boxes (from the prior vendor to Knox) and outlined registration and tracking expectations for building owners who provide lock boxes to facilitate non‑emergency firefighter entry.

The commission also adopted Administrative Bulletin 5.12, an update to mid‑year 2024 fire‑code guidance for energy storage systems (ESS, sometimes called home battery “power walls”). The bulletin lowers the plan‑review threshold so the department will review ESS installs over 1 kilowatt and clarified that either a building permit or an electrical permit will provide a valid routing for fire‑department review. The bulletin also clarified that a C‑10 contractor license is not required for installing premanufactured ESS units.

Procedural business: the commission approved amended minutes related to a June 12, 2024 meeting and voted to elect Vice President Marcy Frazier as the commission's president and Commissioner Paula Collins as vice president. President Army Morgan thanked commissioners before turning leadership to Vice President Frazier.

Votes at a glance

- Amended minutes (regular meeting of Jan. 8, 2025; amendment concerned June 12, 2024 minutes): motion to adopt — outcome: approved. - Administrative Bulletin 2.01 (fire alarm and signaling system submissions / POTS guidance): motion to adopt — outcome: approved. - Administrative Bulletin 4.05 (Knox locking caps for fire department inlet connections): motion to adopt — outcome: approved. - Administrative Bulletin 4.29 (acceptable fire protection for enclosed garages with EV charging): motion to adopt — outcome: approved. - Administrative Bulletin 5.09 (change of vendor for key lock boxes to Knox): motion to adopt — outcome: approved. - Administrative Bulletin 5.12 (ESS/energy storage system mid‑year code update and plan‑review thresholds): motion to adopt — outcome: approved. - Election of officers: Marcy Frazier elected president; Paula Collins elected vice president — outcome: approved.

The meeting record does not include roll‑call tallies for each motion; the clerk announced motions passing and recorded individual yea votes during several items.