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Bill to add a municipal fire chief to State Building Code Council draws support from fire service and agency staff
Summary
Representative Eric Tillman introduced House Bill 144 to add a Montana Fire Chiefs Association member to the State Building Code Council; proponents said the change would bring municipal, on-the-ground fire-safety perspectives, and Department of Labor and Industry staff described how the building code process operates under statute 50-61-15.
Representative Eric Tillman introduced House Bill 144, saying the bill would add a member to the State Building Code Council: a fire chief from the Montana Fire Chiefs Association to ensure fire-safety considerations inform code decisions.
"What this bill does is it adds one more member to a valuable committee for the growth of affordable housing in Montana, a fire chief from the Montana Fire Chiefs Association," Tillman said, arguing that chiefs’ practical experience would help integrate fire protection and emergency-response considerations into code development.
Ole Hedstrom of the Montana State Firefighters Association testified in support, saying, "This bill is simple and will definitely help us perform our job and provide for public safety." Jeremy Jones, identifying himself as a municipal fire chief, urged passage as well, saying municipal chiefs provide a distinct perspective from the state fire marshal and are regularly engaged with development across cities.
Sarah Swanson, commissioner for Montana's Department of Labor and Industry, served as an informational witness and described how the building code process operates. "They are two separate things," Swanson said of building codes and fire codes, explaining that the department adopts the state building code with recommendations from the advisory committee and is required by statute 50-61-15 to consider public health and safety, modern construction techniques and the overall cost of construction as equally weighted factors.
Committee members pressed for clarification about why both a state fire marshal's designee and a municipal fire chiefs' representative are needed. Representative Estman asked for the difference; Tillman and proponents responded that the marshal focuses on the fire code and regulatory enforcement, while municipal chiefs bring practical, municipality-level experience from responding to incidents and interacting with local development processes.
Members also asked whether building codes address urban density; Commissioner Swanson said zoning and density are matters for local jurisdictions and not part of the state building code, which addresses "walls in" construction details such as required staircases and safety systems. Swanson said that fire chiefs’ input would be relevant when the council evaluates specific code provisions, such as required stair configurations.
Representative Tillman closed the hearing urging passage and referenced recent events in California as illustrative of the bill’s purpose. The chair closed the public hearing to no recorded opposition and the committee adjourned later in the session. No committee vote on HB144 was recorded during this meeting.
