SECTION 1. Title 45 of the General Laws entitled "TOWNS AND CITIES" is hereby amended by adding thereto the following chapter: 45-22.5-1. Short title. This act shall be known and may be cited as “The Development Review Efficiency Act.” 45-22.5-2. Purpose. The purpose of this chapter is to facilitate speedier and more efficient development while ensuring public safety, by authorizing licensed or certified third parties to certify documents and inspect buildings in compliance with applicable building and other codes. 45-22.5-3. Definitions. For the purposes of this section:
(1) “Development document” means a document, to include a building plan, site plan, or an application for a building permit, relating to improvements to land required by state or local law or regulation or by a regulatory authority to initiate, engage in, or complete an improvement, but does not include applications or documents for zoning or planning approvals.
(2) “Building inspection” means the inspection of an improvement to land required by a regulatory authority as part of a project to develop or improve real estate pursuant to the provisions of § 23-27.3-111.2.
(3) “Building permit” means a permit required by a regulatory authority to construct or improve or complete an improvement to real estate as required pursuant to § 23-27.3-113.1.
(4) “Independent provider” means a person licensed or certified as a building code administrator, engineer, or architect.
(5) “Regulatory authority” means a department, board, commission, or other entity of the State of Rhode Island or of the political subdivision responsible for processing or approving development documents and building permits or conducting building inspections. 45-22.5-4. Allowance for use of independent providers.
(a) Notwithstanding any law, rule, or regulation, the fee owner of land or a building or structure, or the fee owner’s contractor upon written authorization from the fee owner, may contract with an independent provider to review development documents or provide building inspections with regard to the land, building, or structure, and may make payment directly to the independent provider for the provision of the services.
(b) The fee owner or fee owner’s contractor shall not have an ownership stake in the independent provider, and the independent provider shall not provide legal counsel to the fee owner or fee owner’s contractor.
(c) If a fee owner or contractor retains an independent provider for the purposes of reviewing development documents or providing building inspections, the regulatory authority shall reduce the fee charged for the services by the amount of cost savings realized by the regulatory authority. (d)(1) An independent provider shall only review development documents or provide building inspections if the independent provider maintains insurance for professional liability covering all services performed as an independent provider, unless the regulatory authority waives or modifies the insurance requirement of subsection (d)(2) of this section.
(2) Unless waived or modified by the regulatory authority, the independent provider shall maintain minimum policy limits of one million dollars ($1,000,000) per occurrence and two million dollars ($2,000,000) in the aggregate for any project with a construction cost of five million dollars ($5,000,000) or less and two million dollars ($2,000,000) per occurrence and four million dollars ($4,000,000) in the aggregate for any project with a construction cost of over five million dollars ($5,000,000).
(e) Before any development document reviews or building inspections are performed, the fee owner or the fee owner’s contractor shall provide to the regulatory authority:
(1) The name, firm, address, telephone number, and e-mail address of each independent provider who is performing, or will perform, such services, his or her professional license or certification number, qualification statements or résumés, and, unless the regulatory authority waives insurance coverage, a certificate of insurance demonstrating that professional liability- insurance coverage is in place for the independent provider’s firm in the amounts required by subsection (b)(2) of this section and the list of any lots or structures that the independent provider assist on, along with the scheduled dates.
(2) The following acknowledgment: "By executing this form, I acknowledge that I have made inquiry regarding the competence of the licensed or certified independent provider and the level of his/her insurance and am satisfied that my interests are adequately protected. I agree to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless any regulatory authority from any and all claims arising from my use of these licensed or certified personnel to provide development documents reviews and building inspections with respect to the building or structure that is the subject of the enclosed application."
(f) If an owner or an owner’s contractor contracts with an independent provider to review development documents or provide building inspections, the regulatory authority shall provide equal access to all permitting and inspection documents and reports to the independent provider, owner, or contractor that would be provided to regulatory authority personnel in completing development documents or building inspections.
(g) If such access is normally provided by software that protects exempt records from disclosure, the regulatory authority shall provide requested permitting or inspection documents and reports to the independent provider, owner, or contractor within two (2) business days of a request in electronic format. 45-22.5-5. Qualifications and requirements for independent providers for building inspections.
(a) An independent provider may only provide building inspections that are within the disciplines covered by that person’s licensure or;
(b) Each regulatory authority may audit the performance of independent providers operating within their jurisdiction and demand the owner or owner’s contractor to be present during the times of requested building inspections by the independent provider, although the fact or findings of the audit shall not be given to the independent provider.
(1) Audits may be conducted only after the regulatory authority has created a formal audit evaluation. The regulatory authority may, upon clear and convincing evidence, decide that an independent provider has been negligent in providing building inspections and suspend the independent provider for not more than one year.
(2) An independent provider may be audited no more than four (4) times in a month, unless the regulatory authority determines that the condition of a building constitutes an immediate threat to public safety and welfare.
(3) Work may not be delayed for the completion of an audit by the regulatory authority.
(c) If an independent provider is providing building inspections, upon completion of all required inspections, the independent provider shall submit to the regulatory authority a certificate of compliance summarizing the inspections performed in accordance with the approved plans and applicable codes.
(d) No more than seven (7) business days, or, if the independent provider is inspecting single-family or two (2) family dwellings, no more than three (3) business days, after the receipt of the certificate of compliance with all necessary inspections, and after the payment of all outstanding required fees, a certificate of occupancy or completion shall be issued by the regulatory authority, or the regulatory authority shall provide a notice to the independent provider of any specific deficiencies in the certificate of compliance, with reference to specific code chapters and if the regulatory authority does not issue the certificate of occupancy or completion or provide notice within the required number of days, the certificate of occupancy or completion is considered granted as a matter of law and shall be issued the next business day.
(e) Notwithstanding any provision of this section, any decisions regarding a building inspection, certificate of occupancy, completion, or the suspension of an independent provider by a regulatory authority after an audit, may be appealed to the Rhode Island building code standards commission, which shall adjudicate the dispute. 45-22.5-6. Requirements for reviews of development documents and permits.
(a) An independent provider performing reviews of development documents under this chapter shall review them to determine compliance with the provisions of this chapter. Upon determining compliance, the independent provider shall prepare an affidavit or affidavits certifying that the documents were reviewed pursuant to this chapter, that the documents meet all applicable codes, and that he or she holds the appropriate license or certificate. The affidavit should be submitted to the regulatory authority.
(b) No more than ten (10) business days after receipt of a development document or application for a building permit, the regulatory authority shall approve such document or provide a written notice to the applicant identifying the specific features that do not comply with the applicable codes, as well as the specific code chapters. If no written notice of the document or permit deficiencies is provided within the ten (10) business days, the document or permit shall be deemed approved as a matter of law, and any necessary permit or permits shall be issued by the regulatory authority on the next business day.
(c) If the applicant submits revisions, the regulatory authority has the remainder of the tolled ten (10) business days plus one business day from the date of resubmittal to approve the development documents, issue the requested building permit, or provide a second written notice to the permit applicant stating which of the previously identified documents or permit features remain in noncompliance with the applicable codes, with specific reference to the relevant code chapters and sections. If the regulatory authority does not provide the second written notice within the tolling ten (10) business days, plus one additional business day, the development document or building permit shall be deemed approved as a matter of law, and any necessary permits shall be issued by the regulatory authority on the next business day.
(d) Notwithstanding any provision of this chapter, any decisions regarding the issuance of a development document or building permit by a regulatory authority may be appealed to the Rhode Island building code standards commission, which shall adjudicate the dispute. 45-22.5-7. Limits on regulatory authorities.
(a) A regulatory authority may not adopt or enforce any laws, rules, procedures, policies, qualifications, or standards regarding independent providers more restrictive than those prescribed by this chapter.
(b) This section shall not be construed to limit or deny the authority of the regulatory authority to issue a stop-work order for a building project or any portion of the project, as provided by law, if the regulatory authority determines that a condition on the building site constitutes an immediate threat to public safety and welfare.
(c) If an applicant believes that the regulatory authority or the Rhode Island building code standards commission has interpreted existing ordinances, codes, and laws in error, or any of the following:
(1) Rejected a certificate of compliance;
(2) Rejected a development document in error;
(3) Has not provided a sufficient reduction in fees due to cost-savings resulting from the use of an independent provider;
(4) Refused to issue any valid building permit; or
(5) Suspended an independent provider from performing building inspections in their jurisdiction in error, an independent provider, owner, or owner’s contractor may file an action in a court of competent jurisdiction seeking a determination that the inspection or document or permit complies with all relevant requirements, and may petition the court for an order requiring the regulatory authority to accept the document or inspection and issue any necessary building permits or certificate of occupancy or completion. 45-22.5-8. Severability. The provisions of this chapter are severable. If any provision of this chapter or the application of such provision to any person or circumstance is declared or held to be invalid for any reason, such declaration or holding shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions of this chapter and the application of its provisions to any other persons or circumstances.
SECTION 2. This act shall take effect sixty (60) days after passage.
