Rhode Island 2025 Regular Session

Rhode Island House Bill H5597 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

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5	5	2025 -- H 5597
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7	7	LC001436
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9	9	S T A T E O F R H O D E I S L A N D
10	10	IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY
11	11	JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2025
12	12	____________
13	13
14	14	A N A C T
15	15	RELATING TO EDUCATION -- HEALTH AND SAFETY OF PUPILS
16	16	Introduced By: Representatives Cotter, Ajello, Potter, Carson, Bennett, and Diaz
17	17	Date Introduced: February 26, 2025
18	18	Referred To: House Education
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21	21	It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:
22	22	SECTION 1. Chapter 16-21 of the General Laws entitled "Health and Safety of Pupils" is 1
23	23	hereby amended by adding thereto the following section: 2
24	24	16-21-43. School air quality. 3
25	25	(a) The following words and phrases when used in this section shall be construed as 4
26	26	follows: 5
27	27	(1) “ASHRAE” means the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air 6
28	28	Conditioning Engineers. 7
29	29	(2) “HVAC” means heating, ventilation and air conditioning. 8
30	30	(3) "Mechanical engineer” means a professional engineer certified as a mechanical 9
31	31	engineer by the board of registration for professional engineers, and who meets the requirements 10
32	32	under § 5-8-11, and who has professional experience with heating, ventilation, and air conditioning 11
33	33	systems. 12
34	34	(4) "Mechanical ventilation system" means a building ventilation system provided by 13
35	35	mechanically powered, permanent equipment, such as motor-driven fans and blowers, and includes 14
36	36	carbon dioxide monitoring. The term does not include devices such as wind-driven turbine 15
37	37	ventilators, portable air cleaning and filtration devices and mechanically operated windows. 16
38	38	(5) “MERV” means minimum efficiency reporting value. 17
39	39	(6) “PM2.5” means particles less than two and one-half (2.5) micrometers in diameter. 18
40	40	(7) “PM10” means particles less than ten (10) micrometers in diameter. 19
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44	44	(8) “Qualified adjusting personnel” means either of the following: 1
45	45	(i) A certified testing, adjusting, and balancing (TAB) technician; or 2
46	46	(ii) A skilled and trained workforce under the supervision of a certified TAB technician. 3
47	47	(9) "Qualified testing personnel” means a certified TAB technician or a person certified to 4
48	48	perform ventilation verification assessments of heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems 5
49	49	through a certification body accredited under the ISO/IEC 17024 personnel certification standard. 6
50	50	(10) "Skilled and trained construction workforce” means a workforce, managed in 7
51	51	conformance with the Davis-Bacon Act, P.L. 71-798, 46 Stat.1494, 40 U.S.C. § 3141-3148, in 8
52	52	which at least sixty percent (60%) of the workers are graduates of or registered in and attending an 9
53	53	apprenticeship program registered with the department of labor and training (DLT), division of 10
54	54	apprenticeship training. 11
55	55	(11) “Verification” means the process of evaluating a system, component, or product to 12
56	56	determine whether it complies with specified requirements, design specifications, or regulations. 13
57	57	(b) The department of health shall establish by regulation recommended standards for 14
58	58	indoor air quality in schools, including recommended thresholds and/or rates for the following: 15
59	59	(1) Temperature; 16
60	60	(2) Humidity; 17
61	61	(3) Carbon dioxide; 18
62	62	(4) PM2.5; 19
63	63	(5) PM10; 20
64	64	(6) Ventilation; and 21
65	65	(7) Filtration. 22
66	66	(c) The department of education shall establish a program to undertake a uniform 23
67	67	inspection and evaluation of the indoor air quality within each school building, including heating, 24
68	68	ventilation and air conditioning systems when present. The program shall be conducted in 25
69	69	conjunction with the local school boards. Any deficiencies from the department of health 26
70	70	recommendations established pursuant to the provisions of subsection (b) of this section shall be 27
71	71	included with the estimated cost of remediation in the capital construction, reconstruction, 28
72	72	maintenance, and other capital needs for schools, as outlined in §16-105-3. The inspection and 29
73	73	evaluation shall be performed using a skilled and trained construction workforce at least once every 30
74	74	five (5) years. The assessment shall include, but not be limited to, the following: 31
75	75	(1) Measurements of temperature, humidity, carbon dioxide, PM2.5, and PM10; 32
76	76	(2) Testing for maximum filter efficiency aiming for MERV 13 when feasible; 33
77	77	(3) Assessment of MERV filter level and replacement routine; 34
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81	81	(4) Measurements of outside air delivery rate; 1
82	82	(5) Verification of the condition and operation of ventilation components, pursuant to 2
83	83	specifications provided by the manufacturer; 3
84	84	(6) Verification of unit operation and that required maintenance has been performed; 4
85	85	(7) Verification of control sequences; 5
86	86	(8) Measurement of all air distribution inlets and outlets; 6
87	87	(9) Verification, replacement or installation of carbon dioxide sensors; and 7
88	88	(10) Collection of field data for the installation of mechanical ventilation system or HVAC 8
89	89	system if none exists. 9
90	90	(d) The department of education shall make the inspection and evaluation results easily 10
91	91	available online and send the test results directly to: 11
92	92	(1) Each school's principal; 12
93	93	(2) The department of elementary and secondary education; and 13
94	94	(3) The appropriate local school board. 14
95	95	(e) All schools with HVAC systems shall install filtration that achieves MERV levels of 15
96	96	thirteen (13) to the extent determined to be feasible and appropriate for the existing HVAC system, 16
97	97	as determined by the school board, in accordance with ASHRAE Standard 62.1- 2022 § 8 and Table 17
98	98	8–1. If it is determined by the school board that the existing HVAC system is not designed to 18
99	99	achieve MERV levels of thirteen (13), the school shall install filtration that achieves the highest 19
100	100	MERV level feasible without significantly reducing the lifespan or performance of the existing 20
101	101	HVAC system. School personnel shall inspect and replace filters as recommended by manufacturer 21
102	102	guidelines. All HVAC repairs, upgrades, or replacements shall be performed by a skilled and 22
103	103	trained workforce. All HVAC adjustments shall be performed by qualified adjusting personnel. 23
104	104	(e) The department of health and department of education are hereby authorized to 24
105	105	promulgate rules and regulations necessary to carry out the purposes of this section. 25
106	106	SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage. 26
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113	113	EXPLANATION
114	114	BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL
115	115	OF
116	116	A N A C T
117	117	RELATING TO EDUCATION -- HEALTH AND SAFETY OF PUPILS
118	118	***
119	119	This act would provide that the department of health provide recommended air quality 1
120	120	standards for schools. This act would further provide that the department of education establish a 2
121	121	program to test the air quality in schools and deficiencies in air quality would be addressed in the 3
122	122	responsibilities of the school building authority pursuant to § 16-105-3. This act would also provide 4
123	123	that HVAC systems in schools achieve a MERV level of 13 where practical. 5
124	124	This act would take effect upon passage. 6
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