Oklahoma § 74-324.11 - Building permits - Conformity to building codes Authority of cities, towns and counties - Construction or alteration

§ 74-324.11. Building permits - Conformity to building codes Authority of cities, towns and counties - Construction or alteration

of correctional or assisted living facilities.

A. No person, firm, corporation, partnership, organization,

city, town, school district, county or other subdivision of

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 74. State Government

government shall commence the construction or major alteration of

any buildings or structures that are classified as occupancies in

the building codes adopted by the Oklahoma Uniform Building Code

Commission including all defined occupancies within these groups, or

install original equipment for the operation or maintenance thereof

without obtaining a permit. The permit, for which a charge may be

made in conformity with the local ordinance, except as limited

herein as to governmental agencies, shall be obtained from the city,

town or county in whose jurisdiction the construction or alteration

is planned.

B. All such construction or alteration so planned shall conform

to the applicable provisions of the building code, as last adopted

by the Oklahoma Uniform Building Code Commission.

C. Application for such building permit shall be made to, and

such building permit shall be issued by, any city, town or county in

whose jurisdiction the construction or alteration is planned. The

city, town or county may require the submission of plans and

specifications covering the proposed construction or alteration and

may refuse to issue such permit unless the work so planned is in

accordance with the applicable provisions of the city, town or

county's building code. In all geographical areas wherein no such

permit is required by local authorities such permit must be obtained

from the State Fire Marshal, who may require the submission of plans

and specifications covering the proposed construction or alteration,

and shall refuse to issue such permit unless the work so planned is

in accordance with the applicable provisions of the International

Building Code, International Existing Building Code, and

International Fire Code, as last adopted by the Oklahoma Uniform

Building Code Commission; provided, that the foregoing provisions of

this sentence shall not apply to locations in any geographical area

that are owned or operated by a state beneficiary public trust or

have been purchased or leased from a state beneficiary public trust.

Furthermore, nothing in this subsection shall be construed as

requiring a person to obtain a permit from the State Fire Marshal

for the construction or alteration of a single-family dwelling,

duplex residential dwelling, barn, shed, or carport attached to a

single-family dwelling, or duplex residential dwelling when such

structure is located in an unincorporated area of a county.

D. Nothing in Section 324.1 et seq. of this title shall be

construed as repealing any ordinance of any city or town or any

order of any county requiring the submission to the local

authorities of plans and specifications and the obtaining of

permits, but the power or authority of any such city, town or county

to levy or assess any charge for such permit or to make and enforce

requirements prerequisite to the issuance of such permit, other than

requiring compliance with such building code, shall, as to

governmental agencies, be limited as hereinafter set forth.

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 74. State Government

E. No city, town or county requested to issue any such permit

to any city, town, school district, county or other subdivision of

government shall charge, assess or collect any fee or other charge

for such permit except the regular and customary inspection fees

fixed by ordinance for inspection of the work to be done under such

permit, and no other charge, fee or other conditions of any kind

under the authority of this title shall be made a condition of or

prerequisite to the obtaining of such permit by any such

governmental agency.

F. No bids may be let for the construction or major alteration

of any correctional facility as defined by Section 317 of this title

until plans and specifications for such construction or alteration

have been submitted to the State Fire Marshal for approval. The

State Fire Marshal shall approve the plans and specifications if the

work so planned conforms with the applicable provisions of the

building code, as last adopted by the Oklahoma Uniform Building Code

Commission.

G. 1. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in the fire

code and/or building code, as last adopted by the Oklahoma Uniform

Building Code Commission, all facilities to be licensed as assisted

living facilities, or additions to existing assisted living

facilities, constructed after November 1, 2008, shall be constructed

with the guidelines of the I-II building occupancies if at any time

in their operation they house residents who are not capable of

responding to emergency situations without physical assistance from

staff of the facility or are not capable of self-preservation.

2. Assisted living facilities licensed prior to July 1, 2008,

may house residents who are not capable of responding to emergency

situations without physical assistance from the staff or are not

capable of self-preservation under the following conditions: As

part of the annual licensure renewal process, the facility shall

disclose if any residents who reside in the facility are not capable

of responding to emergency situations without physical assistance

from staff or are not capable of self-preservation, and the facility

shall be required to install fire sprinkler protection and an alarm

system within the facility in accordance with the building

guidelines set forth in the building code for I-II facilities.

3. Assisted living facilities licensed to house six or fewer

residents prior to July 1, 2008, shall be permitted to install 13D

or 13R fire sprinkler protection in lieu of meeting I-II sprinkler

requirements, with approval of the municipal fire marshal or

compliance with local codes.

4. For purposes of this subsection:

a.

the term "assisted living center" shall include an

assisted living center licensed as such by the State

Department of Health and the assisted living center

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 74. State Government

component of a continuum care facility licensed by the

State Department of Health, and

b.

the terms "fire code" and "building code" shall be

deemed to include:

(1) any and all appendices, commentary, amendments

and supplements to, and replacements or

restatements of the Codes, and

(2) any and all other laws, ordinances, regulations,

codes or standards pertaining to assisted living

center construction, occupancy and maintenance

for the protection of lives and property from

fire.

Added by Laws 1965, c. 257, § 11, eff. July 1, 1965. Amended by

Laws 1971, c. 236, § 2, emerg. eff. June 12, 1971; Laws 1973, c.

190, § 1, emerg. eff. May 17, 1973; Laws 1978, c. 163, § 3, emerg.

eff. April 7, 1978; Laws 1990, c. 199, § 2, emerg. eff. May 10,

1990; Laws 2001, c. 136, § 2, eff. Nov. 1, 2001; Laws 2008, c. 397,

§ 1, eff. July 1, 2008; Laws 2009, c. 439, § 21, emerg. eff. June 2,

2009; Laws 2010, c. 231, § 1, eff. Nov. 1, 2010; Laws 2022, c. 311,

§ 2, eff. Nov. 1, 2022.

§74-324.11a. Smoke detectors required for certain buildings Testing by lessees - New construction or remodeling - Penalties.

A. Any person, partnership, corporation, organization, the

state, or city, town, county, or other subdivision of this state,

owning a building or structure used as a hospital, church, theater,

hotel, motel, apartment house, rooming house, dormitory, rest home,

nursing home, day nursery, convalescent home, auditorium, or child

care institution, existing or constructed in the State of Oklahoma,

shall install in such building or structure a smoke detector or

detectors in accordance with the nationally recognized codes,

standards, or practices adopted by the State Fire Marshal Commission

to safeguard life and property from the hazards of smoke and fire.

B. For the purpose of this section, the term smoke detector

means a device which is:

1. Designed to detect visible or invisible products of

combustion;

2. Designed with an alarm audible to the rooms it serves;

3. Powered by either battery, alternating current, or other

power source; and

4. Tested and listed for use as a smoke detector by a

recognized testing laboratory.

C. Any person, partnership, corporation, state, municipality,

county, or other subdivision of this state who is a lessor of a

residential rental property shall explain to the lessee or tenant

the method of testing the smoke detector to ensure that it is in

working order. The responsibility for checking a smoke detector to

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 74. State Government

find out whether such detector is in working order is with the

tenant or lessee leasing or renting a one- or two-family dwelling,

including an apartment in each apartment house, and not with the

person, partnership, corporation, state, municipality, county, or

other subdivision of this state who is a lessor of the residential

rental property to the lessee or tenant.

D. Beginning November 1, 1997, all new construction or

remodeling of residential dwellings which require a building permit

shall include the installment of smoke detectors or the electrical

wiring necessary for the installment of electrical smoke detectors.

E. Any person who violates any provision of subsection A of

this section or any person who tampers with, removes, destroys,

disconnects or removes power from any installed smoke detector,

except in the course of inspection, maintenance or replacement of

the detector, upon conviction, is guilty of a misdemeanor and may be

fined not less than Fifty Dollars ($50.00) nor more than One Hundred

Dollars ($100.00).

F. Nothing in this section shall be construed to allow any

political subdivision in this state to enact laws imposing upon

owners of any dwelling described in subsection A of this section a

greater duty with regard to the installation, testing, repair and

replacement of smoke detectors than is required by this section.

G. The State Fire Marshal Commission shall prescribe, adopt,

and promulgate the rules necessary to effectuate the provisions of

this section which shall include a practical time table for

compliance with the provisions of this act.

H. Municipalities may enact ordinances in order to enforce the

rules of the State Fire Marshal Commission as provided by this

section.

Added by Laws 1984, c. 88, § 1, operative Nov. 1, 1984. Amended by

Laws 1988, c. 45, § 1, eff. Nov. 1, 1988; Laws 1993, c. 295, § 5,

eff. Sept. 1, 1993; Laws 1997, c. 42, § 1, eff. Nov. 1, 1997.

§74-324.11b. Hotels or motels - School or college housing Provision of visual smoke detectors to deaf or hard-of-hearing

guests.

A. Any person, partnership, corporation, organization, state,

city, town, county, or other subdivision of this state, operating a

building or structure used as a hotel or motel, within the State of

Oklahoma, shall provide, at no additional charge to deaf and hardof-hearing guests and upon request of such guests, portable smoke

detectors of the type suitable for providing visual warning to such

guests, a room equipped with fixed visual warning smoke detectors or

a ground floor guest room accessible to the out-of-doors. Each

hotel or motel shall have available at least one portable visual

warning smoke detector, one room equipped with a fixed visual

warning smoke detector or one ground floor guest room accessible to

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 74. State Government

the out-of-doors for each fifty guest rooms of such hotel or motel.

No hotel or motel shall be required to have more than a total of six

portable visual warning smoke detectors, six rooms with fixed visual

warning smoke detectors or six ground floor guest rooms accessible

to the out-of-doors. Each hotel or motel shall have at least one

such smoke detector, one room equipped with a fixed visual warning

smoke detector or one ground floor guest room accessible to the outof-doors.

B. Any school or college that provides housing to deaf and

hard-of-hearing individuals shall make a visual warning smoke

detector available for each such individual's use and may require

users to post a refundable deposit.

Added by Laws 1989, c. 146, § 1, eff. Nov. 1, 1989. Amended by Laws

1998, c. 246, § 38, eff. Nov. 1, 1998.

§74-324.11c. Removable coverings over emergency escape and rescue

openings in residences.

Any residential occupancy built or retrofitted after November 1,

2005, that have installed bars, grills, covers, screens, or similar

devices that are placed over emergency escape and rescue openings,

bulkhead enclosures, windows, or window wells, shall be releasable

or removable from the inside without the use of a key, tool, or

force greater than that which is required for normal operation of

the escape and rescue openings, bulkhead enclosures, windows, or

window wells.

Added by Laws 2005, c. 54, § 1, eff. Nov. 1, 2005.