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STATE OF MICHIGAN

DEPARTMENT OF LICENSING AND REGULATORY AFFAIRS

BUREAU OF CONSTRUCTION CODES

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PUBLIC HEARING

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THURSDAY, MARCH 21, 2024

AT ABOUT 9:12 A.M.

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MICHIGAN LIBRARY & HISTORICAL CENTER

MICHIGAN HISTORICAL CENTER, FIRST FLOOR FORUM

702 W. KALAMAZOO STREET

LANSING, MICHIGAN

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- - -

RE: Administrative Rules for Construction Codes

Part 5. Residential Code

Rule Set 2022-16 LR

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17 HEARING FACILITATOR:

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TONY WILLIAMSON

Bureau of Construction Codes

P.O. Box 30254

Lansing, Michigan 48909

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23 REPORTED BY: Lori Anne Penn, CSR-1315

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I N D E X

2 Opening Statement - Tony Williamson

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4 COMMENTS:

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Bert Gale

Robert Williams

Joe Troutt

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Greg Herman

Gerald O'Conner

David Williams

Joel Tobias

Jeffrey Bowdell

Paul Waug

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Doug Scott

John Stoudt

Paul Kaiser

Jeff Yaroch

Bob Filka

Beau Burten

Chris Cleveland

Evan Detone

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23 Closing Statement - Tony Williamson

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Lansing, Michigan

Thursday, March 21, 2024

At 9:12 a.m.

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(Public hearing commenced pursuant to due notice.)

MR. WILLIAMSON: Good morning. We will

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now start our public hearing.

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My name is Tony Williamson, and I'm a

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Department Analyst for the Bureau of Construction Codes

in the Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs. I

will be conducting the hearing today.

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This is a public hearing on proposed

administrative rules entitled "Part 5 Residential Code-

Rule Set 2022-16 LR". We are conducting this hearing

under the authority of the Administrative Procedures Act,

Public Act 306 of 1969, and on behalf of the Department

of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Bureau of

Construction Codes.

We are calling this hearing to order at

9:14 a.m. on March 21, 2024, at the Michigan Library &

Historical Center, First Floor Forum, 702 West Kalamazoo

Street, Lansing, Michigan 48915. The notice of public

hearing was published in the Michigan Register, Issue

#3-2024, on March 15, 2024, and in the following

newspapers of general circulation: The Morning Sun and

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Oakland Press on February 28, 2024, and the Mining

Journal on February 26, 2024.

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Please know, we are here today to receive

comments or suggestions on the proposed rules. Please

make sure that they relate directly to the proposed rules

and reasons why the changes would be in the public

interest. If you wish to speak, make sure you have

signed in and have indicated that you wish to speak. We

will call on speakers in the order in which names are

listed on the sign-in sheet. Each speaker is limited to

three minutes and only allowed one time to speak during

the public hearing. We are here to receive comments

only. For those making comments today, please clearly

state and spell your name slowly for the record, and if

you are speaking on behalf of an organization, please

identify that organization as well.

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If you have already submitted comments to

the Department in writing or by email, those comments

will be considered in the same manner as the comments

made during the public hearing today. If you have

written comments, you may submit them directly to me.

The Department will also accept written comments

postmarked or emailed until 3/21/2024 at 5:00 p.m. Thank

you.

All right. Mr. Bert Gale.

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BERT GALE: Good morning. I'm Bert Gale,

I'm a building official, electrical inspector for

numerous jurisdictions, including two counties and cities

and townships and villages, also a member of the

International Association of Electrical Inspectors. I

just want to support the idea that the removal of the

electrical portions of, that have been in the Michigan

Residential Code be removed for the next adoption -- for

this new adopted Residential Code. It causes all kinds

of confusion with contractors and myself and probably all

my counterparts are always dealing with and have been

dealing with, well, for a couple decades now, since the

year 2000 when the first Michigan Residential Code was

adopted. So I just want to be on record that I support

the removal of the electrical sections in this proposed

Residential Code.

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MR. WILLIAMSON: Thank you, sir. Robert

Williams.

ROBERT WILLIAMS: Hello. My name is

Robert Williams, I am here representing Sprinklers Local

704, and I am here to talk in favor of adopting and

adding in the R 408.30539a, automatic fire sprinklers.

With my background in installation and maintenance

(inaudible) --

COURT REPORTER: Okay. If you're

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reading, please slow down.

ROBERT WILLIAMS: Oh, I'm sorry. With my

background in, and in installation and maintenance of

fire sprinkler systems for the last 23 years, along with

being a member of the Michigan Fire Safety Board on my

second term, I feel I can safely weigh in on this topic.

If I was to ask somebody to tell me how long a person

would have to exit a burning home, I'm guessing most

people would say about five minutes, when in reality

it's, it currently sits at two minutes. Anywhere between

three and five minutes you would you have flashover which

can read over 1,000 degrees.

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With modern building materials used in

today's homes, homes now burn faster and hotter and also

create a toxic gas called hydrogen cyanide. From the

burning -- and hydrogen cyanide begins to be produced at

600 degrees Fahrenheit and can be transmitted through

inhalation and dermal absorption. A person who has acute

cyanide poisoning has little or no chance of survival.

If a person is able to escape their home with a mild case

of cyanide poisoning, there is going to be a permanent

neurological disability which can lead to Parkinson's

according to the National Library of Medicine. Even our

first responders who go into and around home fires have

the inherent risk of poisoning to which they have to

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drink a substance to counter the effects of the poison,

but can have longterm effects that will add costs to

municipalities and to care for them.

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So with all this being said, the average

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home in Michigan is 1,700 square feet, and the cost for

sprinklers is $1.35 a square foot, which roughly equates

to $3,000 for the cost of their next washer and dryer

combo. So I ask you this: What do you think a life is

worth? Thank you.

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MR. WILLIAMSON: Thank you. Joe Troutt.

JOE TROUTT: Good morning. My name is

Joe Troutt, T-r-o-u-t-t, I'm with Local 704 Sprinkler

Fitters Detroit. I had some prepared statements, but I

think I'm just going to wing it here. I'm just going to

stand and want to be put on record as Section R

408.30539a, that I believe that it should be not

rescinded. You know, a lot of it comes down to cost and

what that cost is for, to install.

When we take into consideration the cost

of that lost home and housing shortage, that lost home

affects it in twofold. (1) We lost a home in the housing

supply, and (2) we have a family that is in need of a

home, so we compound that by losing that home. We have

an opportunity right now to go forward and make things

better to where we don't have a full loss of home. With

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residential sprinklers, you're going to average discharge

of 11 gallons per minute, as opposed to a fire department

is going to discharge 500 gallons per minute, which would

effectively be a loss of the full home. Those 11 gallons

per minute from the residential sprinkler are going to be

directed to the fire, to the hazard, allowing for greater

safety and less loss of home. I appreciate your time.

MR. WILLIAMSON: Thank you, sir. Greg

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Herman.

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GREG HERMAN: Greg Herman, I represent

Sprinkler Fitters Local 704. I stand here today to ask

that R 408.30538 -- I'm sorry -- 5039a not be rescinded.

Residential fire sprinklers are a life safety device.

With a residential fire sprinkler system, 80 percent less

fatality rate. As mentioned before, the national average

is $1.35 per square foot. Putting a price on a person's

life is not worth it. The argument that it's going to be

too costly for an affordable home is a false statement.

I recommend that we do not rescind this. Thank you.

MR. WILLIAMSON: Thank you, sir. Gerald

O'Conner.

GERALD O'CONNER: Good morning. My name

is Gerald O'Conner, and I represent Eaton Corporation.

Eaton supports Michigan to update from the 2015 edition

of the Michigan Residential Code to the 2023 Michigan

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Electrical Code which will apply the electrical

requirements to the 2023 National Electrical Code.

Eaton currently employs over 1,400

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employees at eight locations across the state, including

our vehicle group headquartered in Galesburg and

aerospace facilities in Jackson and Grand Rapids. Our

employees develop, manufacture, and sell safe and

reliable electrical equipment. Our workforce provides

market-leading electrical solutions used in general

construction, performing to the highest standards of

safety and reliability. Many of these products are

installed in homes, commercial buildings, industrial

facilities, and utilities across Michigan.

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We commend Michigan for moving forward

with the adoption process of the 2023 edition of the NFPA

70 National Electrical Code. Current codes produce safer

and more economically prosperous communities. Eaton has

long supported timely and unamended adoption of the

National Electrical Code by state and local

jurisdictions. We believe that adoption of the most

current edition of the NEC promotes a uniform and

up-to-date standard of safety for all occupants in the

built environment. Thank you for your time and

consideration in this important matter.

MR. WILLIAMSON: Thank you, sir. David

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Williams.

DAVID WILLIAMS: Good morning. My name

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is David Williams, and I'm from the International

Association of Electrical Contractors, Michigan Chapter,

and I speak in support of the rule set that was developed

by the Bureau of Construction Codes. The National

Electrical Code has been published every three years

since 1897, and receives thousands of public inputs to

revise the Code each code cycle. The electrical industry

has seen so many changes in the past decade, and the

trend doesn't seem to be slowing down. New technology

like digital electricity, fault-managed power, limited

energy wiring installations, increased use of the medium

voltage installations, the ever-changing electrical

vehicle and alternative energy requirements, DC

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generation and distribution, and on and on. Currently

there are -- currently we are on the 2015 edition of the

Michigan Residential Code. That standard has electrical

requirements that are based on the 2014 National

Electrical Code; and the proposals to submit for the 2014

National Electrical Code had to be submitted October of

2011, so the requirements that we have in Michigan are

based on technology that was 13 years ago.

I started my an electrical apprenticeship

in 1974, 50 years ago, and for the first 26 years we only

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had one electrical code in Michigan, and in 2000, we

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added the Michigan Electrical Code -- excuse me -- the

Michigan Residential Code, and there was -- when we just

had the one electrical code, there was really no

confusion throughout the state. By having two electrical

codes, they do not match, and in a lot of installations,

there are -- the National Electrical Code covers all

installations, the Michigan Residential Code does not,

and it's created a lot of confusion and a lot of

heartache for a lot of installers, as well as inspectors,

and trying to remember which edition that you're actually

either installing or enforcing makes it very difficult

for all our installers throughout. So if you would have

asked somebody who's building a home nowadays if they

thought, felt that their home was being built according

to a current standard, they would almost expect that in

Michigan, and in reality, it's over 13 years old, that

technology.

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We have about 6,000 public inputs that

occur in each code cycle, and we're three code cycles

behind with residential installations. When we had

the -- we had arc faults in the 20 -- 2002 and 2000 --

excuse me -- 2002 and 2005 Michigan Electrical Code, and

in the 2008 code, the Home Builders Association came at

the last minute and said it was going to cost so much

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money, and in reality, after reviewing the areas that it

had added, it would have been less than $137, but the

Home Builders Association said it would cost about

thousands of dollars to have arc faults in those areas.

COURT REPORTER: Arc faults?

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DAVID WILLIAMS: Pardon me?

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COURT REPORTER: Is it arc faults?

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DAVID WILLIAMS: Arc fault circuit

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interrupters, AFCIs for short. I think my time's up.

Thank you.

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MR. WILLIAMSON: Thank you, sir.

DAVID WILLIAMS: I also have some

petitions that were signed. I'll give those to you.

Thank you.

MR. WILLIAMSON: Thank you. Joel Tobias.

JOEL TOBIAS: Joel Tobias, electrical

inspector, City of Livonia. And I also would like to

have the MRC electrical division part of the MRC removed

and go to the NEC, Michigan Residential -- or Michigan

Electrical Code. It's just way too much, and I bet half

of my contractors don't even have an MRC, so why have the

code if they don't even have the code book to go to.

And my second comment is that is that, on

a state level, I'm very disappointed. We came in here

today, our state flag and our national flag are on the

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wrong sides, and we never took time to honor this great

country. Thank you.

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MR. WILLIAMSON: Thank you, sir. Jeffrey

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Bowdell.

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JEFFREY BOWDELL: Good morning. Jeff

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Bowdell from the City of Farmington, a 35-year building

official. I'm also the legislative person for the Code

Officials Conference of Michigan, an organization with

about 175 members. These comments are mine, not the

Organization's.

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I really don't think individual

alteration requests of the Code should be taken up at

this level, but rather the alterations to the Code should

be done at the national level, that they have

(inaudible), you know, I guess they're going up twice a

year to argue about things. Nationally, the code

process, you know, kind of works, it takes into account

the cost implications, takes into account all the safety.

There's really no good reason to rehash code changes at

this level. It seems that the individual groups that I

say don't get what they want at the national level come

back here and push our legislature to accept something

that nationally has been voted on and is already in the

best interest of the general public. The, you know, why

should Michigan accept a different standard, supposedly

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because it's just less expensive? Do our residents

deserve to have a lesser standard, and again, just

because of cost?

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The 2001 Code has been accepted

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throughout the country, you know, we're a little behind,

and again, why should we be doing something different for

our, the Michiganders here in our state. Not going

through this process would give us the ability to stay

more current in our code adoption process. And, again,

the National Code is something that if you put it in code

book, it's in the code book, and then we could just adopt

it instead of arguing about -- I went to a code hearing

25-30 years ago, and, in Michigan, nationally, and the --

they are argued for five hours about stair geometry. I

mean that's ridiculous. The whole country has one stair

geometry, we have a different one. Why? So I really

think that all this should be done outside of this venue,

and that we should have a faster code adoption process

when it does come time to review the code. Thank you.

MR. WILLIAMSON: Thank you. Paul Waug.

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PAUL WAUG: Yeah. Good morning, and

thank you for doing this for us. Just a few comments.

I'm an electrician from Farmington, and I won't repeat

anything.

MR. WILLIAMSON: Sir, I'm sorry, could we

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have your name.

PAUL WAUG: Yeah, Paul Waug, electrician

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from Farmington. I won't repeat anything, I'll just hand

you this when I get done. I would like to see that the

state remove the electrical requirements for the Part 5

Michigan Residential Code and incorporate by reference

Part 8 Michigan Electric Code. A single electric code

would reduce costs for the industry, a single electric

code would enhance uniformity, application of electric

safety requirements across the state for inspectors,

electricians, and contractors. And the rest of my

comments were already repeated, but I'll hand that to

you. Put it on file, please.

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MR. WILLIAMSON: Thank you.

PAUL WAUG: Thank you.

MR. WILLIAMSON: Doug Scott.

DOUG SCOTT: Name is Doug Scott, I'm an

electrical inspector in multiple jurisdictions. I'm up

here just to announce that I would like to have the 2023

National Electrical Code adopted and used as one code for

the State of Michigan, get rid of the MRC, you know, code

on that and, you know, get up to the current standards

with the Michigan Residential Code; usually that lags

years behind in technology that's out there today for the

electrical codes, and the up-to-date electrical codes are

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usually standard with what's going on out there in the

field. That's all I have to say.

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MR. WILLIAMSON: Thank you. John Stoudt.

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JOHN STOUDT: Good morning. Thank you

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for doing this. My name is John Stoudt, I'm a registered

electrical inspector, also serve on the International

Association of Electrical Inspectors Board. And I would

like to see the MRC removed and the NEC be adopted.

There's no reason for us to have a separate standard than

the rest of the nation. Well, thank you.

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MR. WILLIAMSON: Thank you, sir. Paul

Kaiser.

PAUL KAISER: Good morning. My name is

Paul Kaiser, K-a-i-s-e-r. I work for Schneider Electric,

I'm here on behalf of Schneider, as well as I serve on

the Board for the IEEI. I am in support of removing Part

5 of the MRC, electrical section of the MRC and referring

back to using one code, the NEC.

First of all, I want to commend the State

of Michigan for adopting the 2023 National Electric Code.

There's two main reasons I think, compelling reasons to

remove the electrical section; one being, as already

stated, there are technologies that we have developed and

we are designing, installing, and energizing today that

were not around in the 2014 cycle, so the MRC doesn't

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speak to the, some of the technologies and equipment that

we are installing and energizing today in Michigan. And

the second reason, as also noted by others, I think

there's substantial value for all of us in having one

code, one governing rule set for consistency in the State

of Michigan. Thank you.

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MR. WILLIAMSON: Thank you. Jeff Yaroch.

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JEFF YAROCH: Good morning. My name is

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Jeff Yaroch, I'm a former fire fighter with 27 years of

experience in (inaudible) fire services as a battalion

chief. I'm also an attorney, and I served in the state

legislature for six years as a state representative

representing my area.

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I'm here to support keeping the

residential fire sprinkler requirements in the code. For

all the reasons that have been offered for the fact of

supporting having this lifesaving equipment in, I

support, and so I'm not going to reiterate those points.

I do want to comment on some of the

opposition statements I've heard. It has been noted in

some of those opposing fire sprinklers that fire deaths

and casualties occur in old housing with inadequate or

nonfunctioning smoke detectors. We should not lose sight

of the fact that the old housing they speak of was once

new housing, and had it we required these older homes to

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have been built years ago with sprinklers, the research

would support that many of those fire deaths would not

have happened.

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As a former state representative, I

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understand that there are many facets to issues. I

realize we have a housing crisis shortage. The housing

shortage has been cited as a reason to not require

residential (inaudible) --

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COURT REPORTER: Please slow down.

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JEFF YAROCH: (Inaudible.)

COURT REPORTER: I didn't even understand

what you just said.

JEFF YAROCH: May I reclaim my time? I'm

sorry, but I don't want to lose time in the --

MR. WILLIAMSON: Yes.

COURT REPORTER: But I have to write you

down.

JEFF YAROCH: Okay, I appreciate that.

As a former state representative, I

understand that there are many facets to issues. I

realize we have a housing shortage. The housing shortage

has been cited as a reason not to require residential

sprinklers. While increased construction costs has been

cited as having an effect on the housing shortage, my

research finds that there are far more issues, such as

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population growth, increased cost of land, labor

shortages, material shortages, et cetera; and one of the

most significant issues in -- is high interest rates.

Just yesterday the Federal Reserve Board voted to not

lower interest rates. If we want to make an issue of

what really is affecting the housing shortage, maybe we

should be reaching out to the federal government on this.

It is absurd to think that whether we include the

lifesaving equipment or not is going to drastically

change the landscape of our housing shortage.

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While I am a fire service professional,

and I would like to see full residential fire sprinkler

requirements adopted, drawing on my legislative

experience, again, I've learned that half a loaf is

better than no loaf. During the 2021-22 legislative

session, I introduced House Bill 6304. House Bill 6304

requires sprinklers in each path of egress from the

dwelling, included -- including, but not limited to,

hallways and stairwells as the minimum requirement for

residential sprinklers. My life experience has been that

we often found fire victims in the path of egress

attempting to escape the fire. Also, hallways and

stairways are the most likely pathway for fire to spread

through a dwelling. From a pragmatic sense, it would cut

the cost of installation to roughly in half, while

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maintaining sprinklers in the most critical locations.

As I said, I understand that we can find a common ground

between all the parties on this.

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Let me speak as an attorney. As an

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attorney, I would say life is priceless, and I consider

my two daughters and my wife priceless, but when we talk

about wrongful death, wrongful death claims are about a

million dollars or more per life. So in my home, my

$300,000 home, there's $4 million of, over, of life

value. So -- and every year I spend $600 in home

insurance to protect my $300,000 value. It seems

reasonable to spend two -- $1.50 per square foot to

protect for a lifetime that's $4 million worth of value.

Again, I hope that we can find common

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ground on this and maintain residential sprinklers in the

Code. Thank you for your consideration. (Handing

paperwork to reporter.)

COURT REPORTER: That would be great,

because I only got half of what you said.

JEFF YAROCH: I understand. I only get

three minutes.

COURT REPORTER: I know, but I have to

write it. I'm going to use this.

MR. WILLIAMSON: I will email you a copy

of it.

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(Yaroch paperwork taken by Mr. Williamson.)

MR. WILLIAMSON: Thank you. Bob Filka.

BOB FILKA: Good morning. I'm Bob Filka,

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CEO of the Home Builders Association of Michigan. Just a

couple quick things to respond to a couple of the folks

that have spoke so far.

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On sprinklers, sprinkler requirements

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have been in the model codes for a long, long time. The

State of Michigan, democrat and republican

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administrations have rejected them, only two states in

the country require them throughout the entire house, so

to suggest somehow that it's something that should

automatically be adopted is a false statement.

I would also say the electrical folks

that have testified today, they're lobbying to the wrong

group. They need to get the law changed. The state

legislature approved a law requiring a combined Michigan

Residential Code that combines all of the various codes

into one document for use by the residential construction

industry. Lobby the legislature. Through an

administrative process, you can't change the law.

LARA has proposed code changes that

violate state law, it has failed to provide statutorily

required answers in its regulatory impact statement for

this rule set. In fact, it's failed to provide the very

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same information it demands from someone proposing a

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modification here today. If you haven't read LARA's RIS,

they handed it out today. You'll only see explanations

and some attempt to answer these questions as it relates

to Chapter 11, the energy efficiency section of the MRC.

What about the other 43 chapters in the MRC that are

being modified? LARA says essentially nothing about

these other significant changes. And as people have

already testified here today, obviously sprinklers and

AFCIs are a significant change. These requirements, like

I said, were removed by previous administrations, yet

LARA provides no explanation whatsoever as to why now

they've been included.

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In two of our proposed changes we are

submitting today, you will see new data that not only

reiterates what other prior administrations took as fact,

but new research showing that tripping incidents from

AFCIs are a major problem and arguably increase dangers

in a household.

Lastly, in our stack of materials we've

also proposed a change to include the actual electrical

related changes in the text of the MRC. Your draft only

includes it an as a reference. This again fails to

comply with state law.

Thanks for your time today. And I would

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just simply lastly say that by calling this a public

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hearing does not make it so. One of the other things

LARA has done is it has failed to comply with the APA.

Simply because you used this process for other codes that

have recently been adopted and no one objected doesn't

make it legal. You violated the APA, and we actually

recommend that you start over and follow the guidance and

the law as the legislature intended. Thanks.

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MR. WILLIAMSON: Thank you. Beau Burten.

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BEAU BURTEN: Beau, B-e-a-u, Burten. I'm

here representing the Detroit Electrical Industry

Training Center, IBEW Local 58 out of Detroit, as well as

the Southeast Chapter of, Southeast Michigan Chapter of

the National Electrical Contractors Association. All

three of these organizations stand in support of removing

Part 5 from the Michigan Residential Code and would like

to incorporate by reference Part 8 of the Michigan

Electrical Code in replacement of that.

I would also like to stand against any

attempt to rescind Article 210.12 of the National

Electric Code as adopted into the Michigan Electric Code.

This is a requirement for arc fault circuit interrupters,

which are a known lifesaving device. They are generally

being opposed by only one organization in this state,

which is the Michigan Home Builders Association, for

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really what amounts to some nuisance tripping. As

previously stated, I find that to be much less of a

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nuisance than losing a child, a loved one, or somebody

else in this state. So to have a little bit of nuisance

tripping, which did occur early on when these were first

adopted in 1999, which have since been rescinded in the

State of Michigan, we are one of two states that does not

require arc fault circuit interrupters, leaving ourselves

and our homes really in danger for the leading cause of

fires, which is arcing electrical faults. It's estimated

we could eliminate about 50 percent of the electrical

fires with the arc fault circuit interrupter. We're

talking about 25,000 fires each year between the years

2017 and 2019, hundreds of deaths, thousands of injuries,

and a billion dollars in property. We could possibly cut

that in half with the use of arc fault circuit

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interrupters.

Many of the problems associated with the

arc fault is the Michigan Home Builders' poor

installation practices, that they were pushing it too

fast. If they'd actually install it properly, they would

not have the problems they do with the device. A

properly trained installer will not have the nuisance

tripping that an improperly trained installer would have.

Thank you for your time today.

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MR. WILLIAMSON: Thank you. Chris

Cleveland.

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CHRIS CLEVELAND: Good morning. I'm

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Chris Cleveland, C-h-r-i-s, Cleveland, just like the

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city. I am the current president of the International

Association of Electrical Inspectors, Michigan Chapter,

and an electrical inspector for the University of

Michigan. I support removing the electrical requirements

in the Michigan Residential Code; they are outdated and

incomplete.

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The Michigan Electrical Code is the

National Electrical Code by reference, as stated in Part

8 Electrical Code Rule 801.1. The National Electrical

Code is the most widely used code in the United States.

It is the installation code used in all 50 states and all

U.S. territories, and is used in numerous other

countries. A uniform code was the catalyst of the very

first National Electrical Code.

Article 90.2 in the National Electrical

Code, 2a, says practical safeguarding, and states that

the purpose of the Code is the practical safeguarding of

persons and property from hazards arising from the use of

electricity. That is the very least we can allow in the

State of Michigan. Our labor force, our first

responders, and all of our citizens and visitors deserve

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practical safeguarding from the dangers arising from the

use of electricity.

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I support removing the electrical rules

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from the Michigan Residential Code, and I ask for your

support, too. I also have several signatures of

professionals in the electrical industry in Michigan that

also support removing those rules. Thank you.

MR. WILLIAMSON: Thank you. Evan Detone.

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EVAN DETONE: Good morning. My name is

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Evan Detone, E-v-a-n D-e-t-o-n-e, and I'm here on behalf

of myself, a Michigan resident from Lake Orion, Michigan.

I want to be on record supporting the removal of the

electrical requirements from Part 8 of -- or Part 5 of

the Michigan Residential Code, and I want to incorporate

by reference the Part 8 Michigan Electrical Code.

I think having a unified electrical code

across all buildings throughout the state is the way to

go. The current setup of having two different codes is

confusing and potentially dangerous. With new emerging

technologies such as electrical vehicles, solar, and all

sorts of other things like wind, the newer electrical

codes, you know, the new National Electrical Codes that

come ouch each, you know, every three years incorporate

these new technologies, whereas now we're looking at, you

know, old codes pointing to, you know, even older codes,

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it just becomes confusing and potentially dangerous. So

I think the state should remove the two separate codes

and have one unified code for the state. Thank you very

much.

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MR. WILLIAMSON: Thank you.

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If there are no further comments at this

time, I hereby declare this hearing closed. The record

will remain open until 3/21/2024 at 5:00 p.m. for any

other comments you may wish to share about the proposed

rules.

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Thank you for attending.

(Public hearing concluded at 9:54 a.m.)

- - -

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1 STATE OF MICHIGAN )

)

2 COUNTY OF MACOMB )

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I, Lori Anne Penn, certify that this

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transcript consisting of 28 pages is a complete, true,

and correct record, to the best of my ability, of the

Public Hearing held in the captioned matter on Thursday,

March 21, 2024.

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I further certify that I am not

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responsible for any copies of this transcript not made

under my direction or control and bearing my original

signature.

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I also certify that I am not a relative

or employee of or an attorney for a party; or a relative

or employee of an attorney for a party; or financially

interested in the action.

March 28, 2024

_________________ ______________________________________

Date

Lori Anne Penn, CSR-1315

Notary Public, Macomb County, Michigan

My Commission Expires June 15, 2025

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