807-B - College fire inspections.
§ 807-b. College fire inspections. 1. It shall be the duty of the college authorities in general charge of the operation of any public or independent college to cause the buildings under the jurisdiction of such college containing classroom, dormitory, fraternities, sororities, laboratory, physical education, dining or recreational facilities for student use to be inspected at least annually for fire hazards which might endanger the lives of students, teachers and employees therein. Inspections of all public and independent college buildings, with the exception of those within a city having a population of one million or more, shall be conducted by the state office of fire prevention and control or a designee of the state fire administrator. An inspection report shall be produced by the inspecting agency for each building inspected. 2. The annual fire inspection for public and independent colleges shall be made when the college is in session. 3. The office of fire prevention and control is authorized to adopt rules and regulations establishing minimum standards for the content and frequency of such inspections in order to ensure compliance with applicable fire safety standards. In the event violations of applicable codes, rules and regulations pertaining to fire safety are found during inspections, the office of fire prevention and control is authorized to take appropriate actions to ensure that violations are promptly remedied. 4. The state fire administrator shall prescribe the format of the fire inspection report. In prescribing such format the state fire administrator shall consider standards for fire safety set forth in the uniform fire prevention and building code and other applicable fire safety standards. 5. Within ninety days of completing such inspection, the office of fire prevention and control or its designee shall file a copy of the report with the office of the college authorities and with the commissioner. All such reports so filed shall be kept as records for at least three years after which period they may be destroyed. A copy of such report shall also be filed with the chief, or other comparable officer, of any fire department or fire corporation which has the regular duty of fighting fire in the building inspected. 6. The office of fire prevention and control or its designee shall make recommendations to the college authorities with respect to any problems relating to building fire safety noted in such reports. The commissioner may inspect or cause to be inspected at any reasonable time for fire prevention and fire protection purposes the buildings required to be inspected by this section. The commissioner may impose a fine of up to five hundred dollars per day upon any public or independent college which fails to remedy, to the satisfaction of the office of fire prevention and control, any violation noted in a report within thirty days of receiving a copy of such report. 7. Every public or independent college building required to be inspected by the office of fire prevention and control or its designee may also be examined for fire protection purposes at any reasonable time by a. the chief of the fire department of the city, town, village or fire district in which the college building is located, b. the chief of a fire corporation having its headquarters outside a village or fire district, if the college building is located in the area described in the certificate of incorporation of such company, c. the chief of the fire department or fire company affording fire protection to a fire district, fire protection district, or fire alarmdistrict pursuant to a contract, if the college building is located in any such district, d. the member of any fire department or fire company listed in paragraphs a, b or c of this subdivision assigned by the chief. 8. Any person, or any public or other corporation for which any such persons acts, shall not be liable for any error, omission or lack of thoroughness in the making of the inspection and report required or permitted by this section. 9. The term "college authorities", as used in this section, means the board of trustees, board of directors, or other governing board in general charge of the operation of any such college. 10. The term "public college" shall mean and include "state-operated institutions", "statutory or contract colleges" and "community colleges" as defined in section three hundred fifty of this chapter. 11. The term "independent college" shall mean colleges other than those included within subdivision ten of this section.