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Fireworks industry tells JCAR Ohio fire-code changes threaten professional displays; State Fire Marshal says rules implement existing statute
Summary
Industry witnesses told JCAR that Ohio Fire Code revisions classifying certain '1.4g professional-use' fireworks would be implemented without sufficient notice or economic analysis and could make lawful products effectively illegal to sell or use; the State Fire Marshal's counsel said the rules implement existing statute and urged legislative fixes if policy change is desired.
Multiple fireworks-industry representatives told the Joint Committee on Agency Rule Review on Oct. 20 that proposed Ohio Fire Code language would disrupt Ohio display businesses and was adopted with inadequate notice and stakeholder input, while counsel to the State Fire Marshal said the agency was implementing existing statutory permitting requirements.
Roberto Sorgay, co-owner of American Fireworks Company and representing three trade associations, urged JCAR to invalidate the changes and return them to the common-sense initiative stage for additional stakeholder review. "These changes would make lawful products virtually illegal to sell, use, or possess without legislative approval," Sorgay said, and he alleged the State Fire Marshal revised the rules multiple times during the public-comment period and failed to notify roughly 700 commenters about material changes.
Anthony Kogor of the Northeast Ohio Pyrotechnics Group cited the Common Sense Initiative (CSI) timetable and filings, saying the provision now numbered 56.14.4 was not part of the CSI-reviewed package originally filed and therefore lacked the public-review history stakeholders expected. "56.14.4 was not included in the rule package that was reviewed by CSI and, therefore, never subjected to the required CSI review or public comment process," Kogor said.
Several display-operations witnesses described an operational catch-22: under current Ohio law and the marshals' interpretation, exhibitors must hold a license and obtain a locally issued exhibition permit that lists the product before acquiring it, but many display companies do not wholesale or store product and therefore cannot list items they do not possess. Andre LeBlanc of Phoenix Pyrotechnics said, "In order to obtain a permit, you must have the product in order to claim it for your show...Thus, we cannot get a permit because, technically, we don't have the product to submit for the permitting process. If you don't have the product, you can't complete the permit. If you don't have a permit, you can't get the product."
Tim Thompson, counsel for the State Fire Marshal, replied that the agency is implementing existing law—citing the statutory requirement for an exhibitor license plus a locally issued permit—and that the rule language aims to create a clear category for 1.4g professional fireworks so they can be used legally under the permit system. "The permitting process is you provide these people with the fireworks you intend to use at your show...You get the permit, you acquire the permit, then you can bring the stuff into the show," Thompson said, adding that the agency cannot waive statutory requirements and that the rule seeks to align practice with enforcement.
Committee members pressed both sides on enforcement history, the need for clearer statutory language, and the potential for legislative remedies. Several members encouraged the parties to pursue a legislative fix to resolve statutory/administrative tension; counsel and fire marshal staff said they would work with stakeholders and members. Committee counsel noted an effective-date timeline: if the rule proceeds, the soonest effective date on the JCAR calendar would be Nov. 20, with Thanksgiving and New Year's events ahead.
No formal invalidation motion was recorded on the floor during this meeting. The committee adjourned without objection.
