HB-4216, As Passed Senate, May 28, 2008

SENATE SUBSTITUTE FOR

HOUSE BILL NO. 4216

     A bill to amend 1965 PA 290, entitled

"Boiler act of 1965,"

by amending the title and sections 2, 4, 4a, 7, 12, 14, and 24 (MCL

408.752, 408.754, 408.754a, 408.757, 408.762, 408.764, and

408.774), section 2 as amended by 2004 PA 103, sections 4 and 7 as

amended by 1980 PA 274, and section 4a as amended by 2004 PA 265,

and by adding sections 13a, 13b, 13c, and 13d.

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:

TITLE

     An act to regulate the use, construction, installation, and

repair of certain boilers; to create a board of boiler rules; to

prescribe uniform rules and regulations for certain boilers; to

provide for the licensing of certain boiler inspectors, installers,

and repairers and registration of certain boiler operators and

stationary engineers; to provide for powers and duties for certain

state agencies and officers; to provide fees for registrations,

licenses, permits, inspections, and certificates; to provide

penalties and remedies for the violation of this act; and to repeal

certain acts and parts of acts.

     Sec. 2. As used in this act:

     (a) "Antique steam boiler" means a boiler that is no longer

used in production applications and is used to demonstrate the

historical significance of steam boilers in American history.

(b) "Approved apprenticeship program" means a training program

for boiler operators or stationary engineers certified by or

meeting the standards of the United States department of labor

bureau of apprenticeship training and approved by the board.

     (c) "Associated auxiliaries" means equipment that is required

in the operation of a boiler that includes, but is not limited to,

pumps, regulators, feedwater heaters, superheaters, de-

superheaters, economizers, air preheaters, draft fans, combustion

and pollution control equipment, and prime movers.

(d) (b) "Board" means the board of boiler rules created in

section 3.

(e) (c) "Boiler" means a closed vessel in which water is

heated, steam is generated, steam is superheated, or a combination

thereof, under pressure or vacuum by the application of heat from

combustible fuels, electricity, or nuclear energy. Boiler does not

include facilities of an integral part of a continuous processing

unit but does include a fired unit for heating or vaporizing

liquids other than water, if the unit is separate from a processing

system and is complete within itself.

(f) (d) "Boiler for agricultural purposes" means a portable

boiler used in a field or similar open area for the sole purpose of

operating farm equipment or farm machinery.

(g) "Boiler operator" or "stationary engineer" means a person

engaged in the operation of boilers and associated auxiliaries.

(h) (e) "Certificate inspection" means an inspection, the

report of which is used by the chief inspector to decide whether a

certificate, as provided by section 19 20, shall be issued. The

certificate inspection shall be an internal inspection if

construction allows; otherwise the certificate inspection shall be

as complete an inspection as possible.

(i) (f) "Director" means the director of the department of

labor and economic growth or a representative designated by the

director.

(j) (g) "External inspection" means an inspection which that

does not involve examination of the internal surfaces of the

pressure parts of the boiler.

(k) (h) "Heating surface" means the heating surface determined

by the boiler manufacturer and recorded in the manufacturer's data

report or by rules established by the board for a boiler if the

manufacturer's data report is not available or the boiler is not

stamped with its heating surface.

(l) (i) "High pressure, high temperature water boiler" means a

water heating boiler operating at pressure exceeding 160 p.s.i.g.

or temperatures exceeding 250 degrees Fahrenheit.

(m) (j) "Low pressure boiler" means a steam boiler operated at

pressures not exceeding 15 p.s.i.g., or a hot water heating boiler

operated at pressures not exceeding 160 p.s.i.g. or temperatures

not exceeding 250 degrees Fahrenheit.

(n) (k) "P.S.I.G." means pounds per square inch gauge.

(o) (l) "Power boiler" means a closed vessel in which steam or

other vapor is generated at a pressure of more than 15 p.s.i.g. by

the direct application of heat.

(p) (m) "Process boiler" means a boiler operated at a pressure

or temperature from which more than 10% of the boiler's capacity is

used for direct steam humidification or direct process work.

(q) "Qualified technical education program" means an

educational program approved by the board that has a minimum of 350

contact hours in classroom hands-on training, field training, or

supervised plant visits for high pressure boiler operators. The

board may establish lesser standards for an educational program for

low pressure operator training or other entry level training

positions only.

     (r) "Qualified training program" means either of the

following:

     (i) An in-house training program approved by the board and

offered to boiler operators and stationary engineers by an

employer.

     (ii) An in-house training program implemented or developed by a

utility and offered to boiler operators and stationary engineers by

an employer as a result of negotiations between an employer and its

employees.

     (s) "Rule" means a rule promulgated pursuant to the

administrative procedures act of 1969, 1969 PA 306, MCL 24.201 to

24.328.

(t) (n) "Secondhand boiler" means a boiler which that has

changed ownership and location after initial use.

     Sec. 4. (1) The board department shall formulate definitions

and promulgate rules for the safe construction, installation,

inspection, operation, and repair of boilers in the state.

     (2) The definitions and rules formulated promulgated for new

construction shall be based upon and follow the generally accepted

nationwide engineering standards, formulae, and practices

established and pertaining to boiler construction and safety. The

board department, by resolution rule, may adopt an existing

published codification, known as the boiler and pressure vessel

code of the American society of mechanical engineers, with the

amendments and interpretations.

     (3) The board department shall formulate promulgate rules for

the safe inspection and maintenance of boilers , which that were in

use in the state before July 1, 1966. The rules formulated

promulgated shall be based upon and follow the generally accepted

nationwide engineering standards and may be based upon an existing

published codification , known as the inspection code of the

national board of boiler and pressure vessel inspectors.

      (4) The rules formulated by the board shall be promulgated

pursuant to Act No. 306 of the Public Acts of 1969, as amended,

being sections 24.201 to 24.315 of the Michigan Compiled Laws.

(4) (5) A departure from the requirements of this section

shall be is permitted in an unusual situation involving a boiler of

special design or construction , if the board is satisfied that a

proposed facility will provide a degree of safety commensurate with

the intent of this act.

(5) Upon payment of a fee as prescribed by section 4a and

without examination, the board may register an applicant for the

use of a title described in section 13a who is a boiler operator or

stationary engineer licensed or registered as a boiler operator or

stationary engineer in another state, municipality, or country

whose requirements for licensure or registration are, at a minimum,

substantially equivalent to the requirements of this state for

registration as determined by the board, if that other state,

municipality, or country extends the same privileges through

reciprocity to a boiler operator or stationary engineer registered

in this state.

     Sec. 4a. (1) The board, with the advice of the director

department, in consultation with the board, shall promulgate rules

pursuant to the administrative procedures act of 1969, 1969 PA 306,

MCL 24.201 to 24.328, to establish the fee schedules for licenses,

permits, certificates, registrations, examinations, and

inspections. The fees shall reflect the actual costs and expenses

for the department of labor and economic growth in issuing

licenses, permits, registrations, examinations, and certificates

and in conducting inspections.

     (2) Beginning the effective date of the amendatory act that

added subsection (3) July 23, 2004, the department of labor and

economic growth shall issue an initial or renewal license, to

install or repair a boiler or a permit, for the installation or

repair of a boiler or registration, not later than 90 days after

the applicant files a completed application. Receipt of the

application is considered the date the application is received by

any agency or department of the state of Michigan. If the

application is considered incomplete by the department of labor and

economic growth, the department of labor and economic growth shall

notify the applicant in writing, or make the information

electronically available, within 30 days after receipt of the

incomplete application, describing the deficiency and requesting

the additional information. The 90-day period is tolled upon

notification by the department of labor and economic growth of a

deficiency until the date the requested information is received by

the department of labor and economic growth. The determination of

the completeness of an application does not operate as an approval

of the application for the registration, license, or permit and

does not confer eligibility of an applicant determined otherwise

ineligible for issuance of a registration, license, or permit.

     (3) If the department of labor and economic growth fails to

issue or deny a registration, license, or permit within the time

required by this section, the department of labor and economic

growth shall return the registration, license, or permit fee and

shall reduce the registration, license, or permit fee for the

applicant's next renewal application, if any, by 15%. The failure

to issue a registration, license, or permit within the time

required under this subsection does not allow the department to

otherwise delay the processing of the application, and that

application, upon completion, shall be placed in sequence with

other completed applications received at that same time. The

department of labor and economic growth shall not discriminate

against an applicant in the processing of the application based

upon the fact that the registration, license, or permit fee was

refunded or discounted under this subsection.

     (4) Beginning October 1, 2005, the director shall submit a

report by December 1 of each year to the standing committees and

appropriations subcommittees of the senate and house of

representatives concerned with occupational issues. The director

shall include all of the following information in the report

concerning the preceding fiscal year:

     (a) The number of initial and renewal applications the

department of labor and economic growth received and completed

within the 90-day time period described in subsection (2).

     (b) The number of applications denied.

     (c) The number of applicants not issued a permit,

registration, or license within the 90-day time period and the

amount of money returned to licensees, permittees, and registrants

under subsection (3).

     (5) To accomplish the objectives of this section and this act,

a state boiler inspection fund is created as a restricted fund in

the state treasury. The state treasurer is the custodian of the

fund and may invest the surplus of the fund. Earnings from those

investments shall be credited to the fund. The state treasurer

shall notify the director and the Legislature legislature of

interest credited and the balance of the fund as of September 30 of

each year. The director shall supervise and administer the fund.

Fees received by the department of labor and economic growth and

money collected under this act shall be deposited in the state

boiler inspection fund and shall be appropriated by the Legislature

legislature for the operations of the boiler division and indirect

overhead expenses in the department of labor and economic growth.

Funds that are unexpended at the end of each fiscal year shall not

lapse to the general fund and shall be returned to the state boiler

inspection fund.

     (6) As used in this section, "completed application" means an

application complete on its face and submitted with any applicable

registration, licensing, or permit fees as well as any other

information, records, approval, security, or similar item required

by law or rule from a local unit of government, a federal agency,

or a private entity but not from another department or agency of

the state of Michigan.

Sec. 7. This act shall not apply to any of the following:

     (a) Boilers under federal control.

     (b) Boilers used in the power plants of self-propelled

vehicles designed primarily for the transportation of persons or

property upon a highway, except vehicles used exclusively upon

stationary rails or tracks.

     (c) Boilers used solely for agricultural purposes.

     (d) Steam or vapor boilers carrying a pressure of not more

than 15 p.s.i.g., which are located in a private residence or in an

apartment building with a capacity of less than 6 families. except

that installers and repairers of such boilers shall be licensed as

provided in section 13.

     (e) Hot water boilers operated at a pressure not exceeding 160

p.s.i.g. or a temperature not exceeding 250 degrees Fahrenheit that

are located in a private residence or in an apartment building with

a capacity of less than 6 families. except that installers and

repairers of such boilers shall be licensed as provided in section

13.

Sec. 12. Examination The examination for chief, deputy, or

special inspectors shall be in writing and written. The examination

for boiler operators shall be either written or oral. The

examination for stationary engineers shall be both written and

oral. The examinations shall be held administered by the board,

with at least and not less than 2 members of the board shall be

present at all times during the an examination. Such examination

Examinations shall be confined to questions , the answers to which

that will aid in determining the fitness and competency of the

applicant for the intended service, and may be those prepared by

the national board of boiler and pressure vessel inspectors. The

board may adopt any examination it determines appropriate and may

delegate any administrative functions relating to the conduct of

the examination. If an applicant for an inspector's a license fails

to pass the examination, he the applicant may appeal to the board

for another examination which shall be given by the board within 90

days. The record of an applicant's examination shall be accessible

to the applicant and his the applicant's employer.

Sec. 13a. (1) An individual may operate a boiler and

associated auxiliaries without obtaining a registration under this

act.

     (2) An individual or business entity shall not use the terms

"registered boiler operator", "certified boiler operator",

"registered stationary engineer", "certified stationary engineer",

"low pressure registered boiler operator", "low pressure certified

boiler operator", "high pressure registered boiler operator", "high

pressure certified boiler operator", "third-class registered

stationary engineer", "third-class certified stationary engineer",

"second-class registered stationary engineer", "second-class

certified stationary engineer", "first-class registered stationary

engineer", "first-class certified stationary engineer", or any

other name, style, or description that indicates that the

individual or an individual employed by the business entity is

registered under this act unless the individual has been issued a

registration under this act.

     (3) The individual participating in an approved apprenticeship

program, a qualified technical training program, or a qualified

training program may use the title "apprentice certified boiler

operator" or "apprentice certified stationary engineer".

     (4) An individual registered under this act shall only use 1

of the titles described in subsection (2) or the abbreviation

"R.B.O.", "C.B.O.", "R.S.E.", or "C.S.E.".

     (5) A person applying for a registration under this act shall

be not less than 18 years of age, shall possess the physical and

mental capacities to perform his or her duties in a competent and

safe manner, and shall meet the applicable requirements of section

13d. An applicant shall use a form provided by the director.

     (6) The director shall issue a registration upon

recommendation of the board and upon the applicant's payment of an

examination and registration fee as provided for in rules of the

department as prescribed in section 4a for each application. A

registration shall be renewed annually upon payment of a fee

prescribed pursuant to section 4a.

     (7) Not later than 1 year after the effective date of the

amendatory act that added this section, the board shall recommend

for registration without examination an applicant who submits

evidence satisfactory to the board of 1 or more of the following:

     (a) The applicant has had not less than 5 years of experience

in the class or category of boiler operator or stationary engineer

for which the applicant is applying.

     (b) The applicant possesses a license as a boiler operator or

stationary engineer from the cities of Detroit or Dearborn in a

class for which the applicant is applying.

     (c) The applicant has successfully completed a 4-year approved

apprenticeship program, a qualified technical education program, or

a qualified training program in the class or category for which the

applicant is applying.

     Sec. 13b. Boiler operator and stationary engineer

registrations are classified as follows:

     (a) Low pressure boiler operator, who operates low pressure

boiler plants having an aggregate of not more than 4,000 square

feet of boiler heating surface.

     (b) High pressure boiler operator, who operates boiler plants

having an aggregate of not more than 4,000 square feet of boiler

heating surface or not more than 10 steam engine-turbine

horsepower.

     (c) Third-class stationary engineer, who operates boiler

plants having an aggregate of not more than 7,500 square feet of

boiler heating surface or not more than 100 steam engine-turbine

horsepower.

     (d) Second-class stationary engineer, who operates boiler

plants having an aggregate of not more than 20,000 square feet of

boiler heating surface or not more than 200 steam engine-turbine

horsepower.

     (e) First-class stationary engineer, who operates boiler

plants having an aggregate of 20,000 square feet or more of boiler

heating surface or 200 steam engine-turbine horsepower or more.

     Sec. 13c. (1) Not later than 180 days after the effective date

of the amendatory act that added this section, the board shall

promulgate rules designating the course content for qualified

technical education programs for the various categories and classes

of registration of boiler operators and stationary engineers.

     (2) The rules described in subsection (1) shall provide that

the course content of qualified technical education programs for

entry level registrants include at least all of the following

subject matter areas:

     (a) Basic functions, construction, and operation of all types

of boilers.

     (b) The function of boiler appliances, accessories, and

associated auxiliaries.

     (c) Materials used in boilers and the effect of temperature

extremes on those materials.

     (d) The fuels used in boilers and fundamentals of combustion.

     (e) Basic electricity.

     (f) Plant operation and boiler maintenance.

     (g) Instrumentation and controls.

     (h) Fundamental mathematics and principles of the metric

system.

     (i) General safety procedures.

     (j) Recognition of dangerous operation conditions.

     (3) The board shall provide that the course content for

categories and classes other than entry level registrants includes

subject matter similar to those described in subsection (2) in the

degree of depth and difficulty appropriate for the category and

class.

     Sec. 13d. (1) The director shall not issue a registration for

a title described in section 13a(2) unless the applicant meets the

requirements for the classification as prescribed in subsections

(2) to (6).

     (2) An applicant for a low pressure boiler operator

registration shall have not less than 1 year of experience

operating or maintaining low or high pressure boilers, steam prime

movers, or associated auxiliaries.

     (3) An applicant for a high pressure boiler operator

registration shall have 1 or more of the following:

     (a) Not less than 2 years of experience in the operation of a

high pressure boiler.

     (b) A low pressure boiler operator's registration and not less

than 1 year of experience in the operation of a low pressure

boiler.

     (c) Not less than 1 year of either a qualified training

program, a qualified technical education program, or an approved

apprenticeship program.

     (4) An applicant for a third-class stationary engineer

registration shall meet 1 or more of the following requirements:

     (a) Be registered as a high pressure boiler operator and have

not less than 1 year of experience in the operation of a high

pressure boiler.

     (b) Be registered as a low pressure boiler operator, have not

less than 1 year of experience in the operation of a low pressure

boiler, and have not less than 1 year of maintenance experience on

high pressure boilers and associated auxiliaries.

     (c) Be registered as a high pressure boiler operator and have

not less than 1 year of boiler maintenance experience or not less

than 1 year as an apprentice in an approved training program in a

high pressure boiler plant having an aggregate heating surface of

more than 4,000 square feet.

     (d) Have not less than 3 years of experience in the operation

of boilers in a high pressure boiler plant having an aggregate

heating surface of more than 4,000 square feet.

     (e) Have not less than 1 year of experience in the operation

of boilers in a high pressure boiler plant having an aggregate

heating surface of more than 4,000 square feet along with

sufficient experience operating steam prime movers in excess of 10

horsepower for a combined total of not less than 3 years of

experience.

     (f) Have an associate degree in energy technology or a related

field as determined by the board with a power engineering option

from a 2-year college whose program is approved by the board and

employment or cooperative education experience of not less than 360

hours as a power engineer, boiler operator, or stationary engineer

in a steam electric generation plant or a high pressure steam

heating or process plant.

     (5) An applicant for a second-class stationary engineer

registration shall meet 1 or more of the following requirements:

     (a) Be registered as a third-class stationary engineer and

have not less than 1 year of experience as a third-class stationary

engineer.

     (b) Have a bachelor's degree in engineering, engineering

technology, heating/power technology, or energy technology from a

college or university whose program is approved by the board and

employment experience as an engineer in the engineering or research

division of a steam electric power generating plant for not less

than 1 year.

     (c) Have not less than 4 years of experience in the operation

of boilers in a high pressure boiler plant having an aggregate

heating surface of more than 7,500 square feet.

     (d) Have not less than 1 year of experience in the operation

of boilers in a high pressure boiler plant having an aggregate

heating surface of more than 7,500 square feet along with

sufficient experience operating steam prime movers in excess of 100

horsepower for a combined total of not less than 4 years of

experience.

     (e) Have not less than 1 year of experience in the operation

of boilers in a high pressure boiler plant having an aggregate

heating surface of more than 7,500 square feet along with

sufficient experience operating boilers in a high pressure boiler

plant having an aggregate heating surface of more than 4,000 square

feet for a combined total of not less than 4 years of experience.

     (6) An applicant for a first-class stationary engineer

registration shall meet 1 or more of the following requirements:

     (a) Be registered as a second-class stationary engineer and

have not less than 2 years of experience as a second-class

stationary engineer.

     (b) Have not less than 6 years of experience in the operation

of boilers in a high pressure boiler plant having an aggregate

heating surface of more than 20,000 square feet.

     (c) Have not less than 2 years of experience in the operation

of boilers in a high pressure boiler plant having an aggregate

heating surface of more than 20,000 square feet along with

sufficient experience operating steam prime movers in excess of 200

horsepower for a combined total of not less than 6 years of

experience.

     (d) Have not less than 2 years of experience in the operation

of boilers in a high pressure boiler plant having an aggregate

heating surface of more than 20,000 square feet along with

sufficient experience in the operation of boilers in a high

pressure boiler plant having an aggregate heating surface of more

than 7,500 square feet of heating surface for a combined total of

not less than 6 years of experience.

     (e) Complete a 4-year approved apprenticeship program or a 4-

year qualified training program.

(f) Complete a 4-year program with a bachelor's degree from a

college or university in engineering, engineering technology,

heating/power technology, or energy technology whose program is

approved by the board and which includes a hands-on power option

from a 2-year community college program or the equivalent, as

determined by the board, and not less than 1 year of employment,

internship, or cooperative education experience in a steam electric

generation plant or high pressure steam heating process plant.

     Sec. 14. (1) An inspector's, repairer's, or installer's The

chief inspector may suspend the license may be suspended by the

chief inspector for of an inspector, repairer, or installer or the

registration of a boiler operator or stationary engineer due to the

incompetence of the holder thereof or for wilful registrant or

licensee or due to willful falsification of any a matter or

statement contained in his that registrant's or licensee's

application or in a report of any inspection made by him the

registrant or licensee. Written notice of the suspension shall be

given by the chief inspector within not more than 10 days after the

suspension to the registrant or licensee, his the registrant's or

licensee's employer, and the board. A person whose registration or

license has been suspended may appeal to the board as provided in

section 22 and be present in person and be represented by counsel

at the hearing of the appeal.

     (2) If the board has reason to believe that a registrant or

licensee is no longer qualified to hold his or her registration or

license, the board, upon not less than 10 days' written notice to

the registrant or licensee and his the registrant's or licensee's

employer, shall hold a an administrative hearing at which the

registrant or licensee and his or her employer shall have an

opportunity to be heard. If, as a result of the hearing, the board

finds that the registrant or licensee is no longer qualified to

hold his or her registration or license, the board shall recommend

to the commissioner director that the registration or license be

revoked, and the commissioner director shall thereupon immediately

revoke such the registration or license. forthwith.

     (3) A person whose registration or license has been suspended

may apply, after 90 days from the date of the suspension, for

reinstatement of the registration or license.

     Sec. 24. (1) It shall be unlawful for any An individual, or

other person, firm, partnership, or corporation to shall not

operate in this state a boiler without a valid inspection

certificate. The operation of a boiler without such a valid

inspection certificate , or at a pressure exceeding that specified

in such the inspection certificate , is a misdemeanor on the part

of the owner, user, or operator thereof and shall be punishable by

a fine not exceeding $500.00, or imprisonment not to exceed for not

more than 60 days, or by a fine of not more than $500.00, or both.

Each day of the unlawful operation is a separate offense.

(2) A person using a title described in section 13a(2) without

a registration issued under this act is guilty of a misdemeanor

punishable by imprisonment for not more than 60 days, a fine of not

more than $2,000.00, or both.

     (3) A business entity using or advertising the use of an

individual having a title described in section 13a(2), if that

individual is not registered under this act, is guilty of a

misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment for not more than 60 days, a

fine of not more than $2,000.00, or both.