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Senate committee adopts amendment and passes bill allowing third-party plan review and inspections
Summary
Senate Bill 322, as amended, creates an alternate path for third-party plan review and inspections for building permits while preserving city oversight. The bill sets timelines for city responses, requires third parties to be licensed or approved, and bars third parties from issuing certificates of occupancy.
Senator Joshua Bridal presented an amendment and then the substance of Senate Bill 322 to the City, County & Local Affairs Committee, saying the measure offers an alternate path for third-party plan review and inspection while retaining municipal regulatory oversight.
Bridal described the program as two phases: plan review and inspections. Under the bill, a city has five days after a developer submits documents to say whether it can meet the original 60-day fast-track review timeline; if the city cannot, a developer may elect a third-party reviewer. Third-party reviewers may be a registered professional engineer, a registered architect, or a city-approved certified firm or qualified individual (for example, a retired inspector). Third parties must provide an affidavit and supporting documentation that they reviewed plans consistent with city code; the city then has 10 days to review the third-party-reviewed plans and may return them with specific code citations. Bridal said, "If the toll time expires, as per the original fast track, that permit will be automatically issued."
For inspections, third-party inspectors schedule inspections, notify the city, and file reports. The city then has one business day to object to a third-party inspection report; silence is treated as approval. Bridal emphasized that third parties may not issue certificates of occupancy, which remain a municipal responsibility. He also described dispute routes such as appeals to city council or professional licensing boards.
During committee questioning, Senator Petty asked why developers would elect the third-party path and who would pay; Bridal replied that developers often prefer predictable timelines and that third parties carry licensing and errors-and-omissions insurance that creates accountability: "If a professional engineer approved it and send it to the city and the city dinged it on their certificate of occupancy, that would be on that third party inspector to compensate for their oversight failures." Senator Rice asked whether the bill exempts hospitals and nursing homes; Bridal confirmed exemptions are included.
The committee adopted the amendment, then voted to adopt SB322 as amended; the chair announced the bill passed.
