Chapter to ap. ply to persons learning business, when. 1894, 455, § 9. Tenure of inspectors. SECTION 9. The provisions of this chapter shall apply to all 1 persons learning the business of plumbing when they are sent out 2 to do the work of a journeyman plumber. 3 SECTION 10. Any person who held an appointment as inspector 1 1894, 455, § 10. of plumbing on the sixth day of July in the year eighteen hundred 2 and ninety-four may retain his position, and, without further ex- 3 amination, be deemed to have been appointed under the provisions 4 of this chapter. Expenditure of fees. 5 SECTION 11. Inspectors of buildings and boards of health may 1 1894, 455, § 11. expend such portion of the fees collected by them under the pro- 2 visions of this chapter as is necessary to properly perform the duties 3 imposed thereby, and they shall annually, before the first day of 4 June, make a full report in detail to their respective cities or towns 5 of all their proceedings during the year under the provisions of 6 this chapter. SECTION 12. 7 The provisions of this chapter shall not be opera- 1 tive in any town until accepted by a vote of the inhabitants 2 thereof, nor in such portion of the territory of a city lying out- 3 side of the limits of the water supply thereof or unconnected with 4 common sewer, as the city council votes to exempt from its 5 operation. a 6 CHAPTER 104. OF THE INSPECTION OF BUILDINGS. SECTIONS 1-13. — Municipal Regulations. SECTIONS 14–21. — Inspection by Inspectors of Factories SECTIONS 22-44. - Specific Requirements. SECTIONS 45-53. - General Provisions. Building limits in towns. CITY AND TOWN REGULATIONS. SECTION 1. Every city, except Boston, and every town which 1 accepts the provisions of this section or has accepted the corre- 2 sponding provisions of earlier laws may, for the prevention of fire 3 and the preservation of life, by ordinances or by-laws not incon- 4 sistent with law and applicable throughout the whole or any defined 5 part of its territory, regulate the inspection, materials, construction, 6 alteration and use of buildings and other structures within its limits, 7 except such as are owned or occupied by the United States or by 8 the commonwealth and except bridges, quays and wharves, and may 9 prescribe penalties not exceeding one hundred dollars for each 10 violation of such ordinances or by-laws. 11 SECTION 2. In a town which accepts the provisions of this and 1 1870, 375, $$ 1,3. the following section or has accepted the corresponding provisions 2 1894, 481, § 12. of earlier laws, no dwelling house or other structure more than eight 3 feet in length or breadth and seven feet in height, except detached 4 P. S. 104, § 2. 5 houses or structures situated more than one hundred feet from any 6 other building and wooden structures erected on wooden wharves, 7 shall be built within such limits as the town may from time to time 8 prescribe, unless made of and covered with an incombustible 9 material or unless a license in writing is granted therefor by the 10 selectmen for public good or necessity and recorded in the town 11 records. 1 nuisance, 1870, 375, § 2. SECTION 3. A building or structure which is erected in violation Building a 2 of the provisions of the preceding section shall be deemed a common when. 3 nuisance without other proof thereof than proof of its unlawful con- P. S. 104, § 3. 4 struction and use; and the selectmen may abate and remove it in the 1894, 481, § 13. 5 same manner as boards of health may remove nuisances under the 6 provisions of sections sixty-six, sixty-seven and sixty-eight of 7 chapter seventy-five. buildings. 1878, 47, § 1. 1894, 481, 14. 1899, 139, § 1. P. S. 104, § 4. 1 SECTION 4. In a city or town which accepts the provisions of Inspection of 2 this and the eight following sections or has accepted the corre3 sponding provisions of earlier laws, the superintendent of public 4 buildings or such other officer as the mayor and aldermen of said 5 city or the selectmen of said town may designate shall be inspector 6 of buildings, and, immediately upon being informed by report or 7 otherwise that a building or other structure or anything attached to 8 or connected therewith in said city or town is unsafe or dangerous 9 to life or limb, shall inspect the same; and if it appears to him to 10 be dangerous, he shall forthwith in writing notify the owner, agent 11 or any person having an interest therein to remove it or make it 12 safe and secure. If it appears that such structure would be specially 13 unsafe in case of fire, it shall be deemed dangerous within the mean14 ing hereof, and the inspector may affix in a conspicuous place upon 15 its exterior walls a notice of its dangerous condition, which shall 16 not be removed or defaced without authority from him. 1 structures to removed. 49. SECTION 5. Whoever is so notified shall be allowed until twelve Dangerous 2 o'clock noon of the day following the service of the notice in which be secured or 3 to commence the securing or removal of such structure, and he shall 1878, 47, § 2. 4 employ sufficient labor speedily to secure or remove it; but if the 1888, 399, § 3. 5 public safety so requires and if the mayor and aldermen or select- 1894, 481, §§ 15, 6 men so order, the inspector may immediately enter upon the 1899, 139, § 2. 7 premises with the necessary workmen and assistants and cause such 8 unsafe structure to be shored up, taken down or otherwise secured 9 without delay, and a proper fence or boarding put up for the protec10 tion of passers-by. 1 SECTION 6. If such owner, agent or person interested in such 2 unsafe structure refuses or neglects to comply with the requirements 3 of such notice within the time limited, and such structure is not 4 secured or taken down as therein ordered, a careful survey of the 5 premises shall be made by a board consisting in a city, of the city 6 engineer, the chief engineer of the fire department and one disinter7 ested person to be appointed by said inspector, and in a town, of a 8 surveyor, the chief engineer of the fire department and one disinter9 ested person to be appointed by said inspector. If there is no city Survey of 178, 47, $3. 1888, 399, § 4. premises. P. S. 104, § 6. 50. 4, 481, §§ 16, 1899, 139, § 3. Notice to non residents. 1878, 47, § 10. P. S. 104, § 11. engineer in such city or no chief engineer of the fire department in 10 such city or town, the mayor and aldermen or selectmen, as the case 11 may be, shall designate one or more officers or other suitable per- 12 sons in place of the officers so named as members of said board. A 13 report of such survey shall be made in writing and a copy thereof 14 served on such owner, agent or any interested person. 15 SECTION 7. If such report declares such structure to be unsafe 1 and dangerous, and if the owner, agent or person interested con- 2 tinues such refusal or neglect, the inspector shall cause it to be 3 taken down or otherwise made safe; and the costs and charges in- 4 curred shall constitute a lien upon the land upon which the build- 5 ing is situated, and shall be enforced within the time and in the 6 manner provided for the collection of taxes on land; and such 7 owner or interested person shall, for every day's continuance of 8 such refusal or neglect after being so notified, forfeit to the city or 9 town in which the structure is situated not less than ten nor more 10 than fifty dollars. 11 SECTION 8. An owner or interested person who is aggrieved 1 by such order may have the remedy prescribed by sections two, 2 three and four of chapter one hundred and one; but the provisions 3 of this section shall not prevent the city or town from recovering 4 the forfeiture provided in the preceding section from the date of the 5 service of the original notice, unless the order is annulled by the 6 jury. 7 SECTION 9. If an owner or interested person lives out of the 1 commonwealth, said notices may be served upon him by a notary 2 1894, 481, § 21. public, whose certificate of service under his notarial scal shall 3 be sufficient evidence thereof. Restraint of illegal con 1870, 305. 1872, 243, § 3. 1878, 47, § 9. P. S. 104, § 12. 1891, 293. 4 SECTION 10. The supreme judicial court or the superior court 1 struction, etc. shall have jurisdiction in equity to restrain the construction, altera- 2 tion, maintenance or use of a building or structure in violation of 3 the provisions of any ordinance or by-law of a city or town and to 4 order its removal or abatement as a nuisance; and to restrain the 5 further construction, alteration or repair of a building or structure 6 reported to be unsafe or dangerous under a survey authorized by 7 section six, until the determination of the matter, as provided in 8 section eight. 1894, 481, §§ 4, 22. School houses in cities to have fire escapes, etc. 1894, 337. 1894, 481, § 40. 9 SECTION 11. If a school house in a city has not been provided 1 with a safe and proper egress or other means of escape from fire, as 2 required by this chapter, within six months after the written notice 3 provided for in section eighteen, the mayor, for the purpose of 4 conforming to the provisions of this chapter relative to egresses or 5 other means of escape from fire in school houses, may, upon peti- 6 tion of one hundred citizens or taxpayers in said city, authorize the 7 expenditure upon such school house of not more than fifteen per 8 cent of the cost thereof, payable from any money in the treasury 9 of said city which is not otherwise appropriated. 10 unsafe 1 SECTION 12. Any member of the inspection department of the Inspection of 2 district police, if called upon by the mayor and aldermen of any structures. 3 city, except Boston, or by the selectmen of a town, shall inspect any 1894, 481, § 47. 4 building or other structure or anything attached to or connected 5 therewith in such city or town which has been represented to be 6 unsafe or dangerous to life or limb. 1888, 399, § 1. structures to made safe. 1988, 39, § 2. 1894, 481, § 48. 1 SECTION 13. If it appears to such inspector that the building or Unsafe 2 other structure, or anything attached to or connected therewith, is be removed or 3 unsafe or dangerous to life or limb in case of fire or otherwise, he 4 shall cause it to be removed or rendered safe and secure, in the 5 manner provided by sections four to nine, inclusive, and may cause 6 proceedings to be instituted under the provisions of section ten. 1 INSPECTION BY INSPECTORS OF FACTORIES AND PUBLIC BUILDINGS. SECTION 14. The words "inspector of factories and public build- Definition. 2 ings," as used in this chapter, shall mean a member of the inspection 3 department of the district police. 1 examine build § SECTION 15. The inspectors of factories and public buildings shall Inspectors to 2 from time to time examine all buildings within their respective dis- ings, etc. 3 tricts which are subject to the provisions of this chapter. If, in the 184, 481, 27. 4 judgment of any such inspector, such building conforms to the re5 quirements of this chapter, he shall issue to the owner, lessee or 6 occupant thereof, or of any portion thereof used in the manner de7 scribed in section twenty-five, a certificate to that effect, specifying 8 the number of persons for whom the egresses and means of escape 9 from fire are sufficient. Such certificate shall not continue in force 10 for more than five years after its date, but so long as it continues in 11 force it shall be conclusive evidence of a compliance by the person to 12 whom it is issued with the provisions of this chapter. It shall be 13 void if a greater number of persons than is therein specified are 14 accommodated or employed or assemble, lodge or reside within such 15 building or portion thereof, or if such building is used for any pur16 poses materially different from those for which it was used at the time. 17 of the granting thereof, or if its interior arrangement is materially 18 altered, or if any egresses or means of escape from fire in such 19 building at the time of granting such certificate are rendered un20 available or materially changed. Such certificate may be revoked 21 by such inspector at any time upon written notice to the holder 22 thereof or to the occupant of the premises for which it was granted, 23 and shall be so revoked if, in the opinion of such inspector, the con24 ditions have so changed that the existing egresses and means of 25 escape are not proper and sufficient. A copy of said certificate shall 26 be kept posted in a conspicuous place upon each story of such 27 building by the occupant of the premises covered thereby. ment of appli certificate. 1 SECTION 16. Upon application to an inspector for a certificate Acknowledg. 2 under the provisions of this chapter, he shall issue to the applicant cation for 3 an acknowledgment of such application, which for ninety days, pend- 1888, 426, § 3. 4 ing the granting or refusal of such certificate, shall have the same 1894, 481, 28. 5 effect as such certificate, and such acknowledgment may be renewed Notice of changes. 1888, 426, § 4. 1894, 481, § 29. Notice of fail ure to conform. 1888, 426, § 5. 1894, 481, § 30. Appeal from 1894, 481, § 5. Compensation of experts. 1890, 438, § 2. 1894, 481, § 6. Costs. 1890, 438, § 3. 1894, 481, § 7. by him with the same effect for a further period, not exceeding 6 ninety days, and may be further renewed by the chief of the district 7 police, until such time as such certificate shall be granted or re- 8 fused. 9 SECTION 17. If any change in the use or otherwise shall be 1 made upon premises for which such certificate has been issued which 2 would render the certificate void according to the provisions of sec- 3 tion fifteen, the person who makes such change shall forthwith give 4 written notice thereof to an inspector for the district or to the chief 5 of the district police. 6 SECTION 18. If an inspector finds that any building or portion 1 thereof which is subject to the provisions of this chapter fails to 2 conform thereto, or if any change is made therein which would 3 render a certificate void according to the provisions of section fifteen, 4 he shall give notice in writing to the owner, lessee, occupant or 5 agent in charge thereof, specifying such additional egresses or 6 means of escape from fire as in his opinion may be necessary to con- 7 form to the provisions of this chapter and to obtain a certificate as 8 aforesaid. 9 SECTION 19. Whoever is aggrieved by the order, requirement or 1 direction of an inspector given under the provisions of this chapter 2 may, within ten days after the service thereof, apply to the superior 3 court for the county in which the building to which such order, re- 4 quirement or direction relates is situated for an injunction to restrain 5 its enforcement; and after such notice as said court shall order to 6 all parties interested, a hearing may be had before said court at such 7 early and convenient time and place as shall be fixed by said order; 8 or the court may appoint three disinterested persons, skilled in 9 the subject matter of the controversy, to examine the matter and hear 10. the parties; and the decision of said court, or the decision, in writ- 11 ing and under oath, of the majority of said experts, filed in the office 12 of the clerk of courts in said county within ten days after such 13 hearing, may alter, annul or affirm such order, requirement or 14 direction. Such decision or a certified copy thereof shall have the 15 same authority, force and effect as the original order, requirement 16 or direction of the inspector. If such decision annuls or alters 17 such order, requirement or direction, the court shall also enjoin the 18 said inspector from enforcing it, and in every such case the certifi- 19 cate required by section fifteen shall thereupon be issued by said 20 court or by said experts. 21 SECTION 20. The court may award reasonable compensation to 1 experts appointed under the provisions of the preceding section 2 which, if the order, requirement or direction of the inspector is 3 altered or annulled, shall be paid by the county in which the appli- 4 cation for an injunction was made: otherwise, by the applicant. 5 SECTION 21. If the order, requirement or direction of the in- 1 spector is affirmed by the court or the experts, costs shall be taxed 2 |