The State Fire Marshal’s Office is the responsible agency for administration of Defensible Space. However, local jurisdictions may be authorized to administer the code requirements. These agencies must periodically report compliance at the tax lot level to the State Fire Marshal. The time period for such a report is not set forth in the new code provisions. Nor is there any authorization clause that would require the fire marshal or local government personnel to enter private property. In the jurisdictions that have a Firewise program there is a clause that clearly states that no one is authorized to enter private property unless invited by the property owner. A discussion with the State Fire Marshal’s Deputy reveals that Fire Marshals are sworn personnel of the State Police and have authority to enter your property. However, it was explained that if an inspection is needed, the Fire Marshal will come to the door and ask permission from the home owner. If permission is not granted, the Fire Marshal will make an assessment from the public street. If the local government is authorized to do fire reviews, the Fire Marshal said that the local government will adopt local laws on how the Defensible Space program will be conducted.
The provisions of SB 762 allow the adoption of a graduated fee schedule to assess penalties for non compliance with requirements. The Fire Marshal stated that the Defensible Space program will be focused on education and not punishment. We will need to see how the program actually works before we can make any conclusions. It would appear that some coordination between the Fire Marshal and a local government is necessary as defensible space is only required when there are structures on property. Nothing is required for vacant property. Thus when a request for a structure on a vacant property is requested, the State Fire Marshal would need to be notified. If a remodel of existing structures is requested, a notice would also need to be given to the State Fire Marshal. Much of the coordination with local government is not yet developed and must be addressed during the formal rulemaking to implement the new code provisions.