The Illinois General Assembly passed legislation this summer aimed at saving lives in the event of a building fire. The Fire and Smoke Damper Inspection Act, championed by Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation (SMART) workers from Local 265, requires inspections and testing of HVAC fire dampers and smoke dampers be conducted by individuals certified by the International Certification Board (ICB) and accredited to comply with requirements by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) or another nationally recognized certification board.

The bill becomes effective on Jan. 1.

Illinois joins New Mexico, Nevada and Washington as the fourth state to introduce and successfully pass statewide legislation that requires training and certification to perform the periodic inspections of fire dampers, smoke dampers and smoke control systems. These systems allow for a building’s occupants to exit during an emergency and first responders to enter.

The legislation passed the Illinois House and Senate unanimously, in part because of the union’s legislative engagement and its willingness to listen to the concerns of all stakeholders.

“We really did our homework,” said John Daniel, president and business manager of Local 265. “Local 265 has become very politically active. We have members who are interested in the legislative and political process, and we have members who are running for office to affect change. Their involvement is what drove us to develop a robust political and legislative strategy. We hired a lobbyist, rolled up our sleeves and got to work on this legislation.”

Although the local had been politically and legislatively active in the past, it has more recently taken a more responsive approach, he said.

As soon as the bill becomes effective Daniel plans to have his membership ready to handle the resulting work. The legislation could put as many as 1,200 certified technicians across the state to work each year. In the meantime, he and his counterparts across the state have to ensure the new law will be enforced, he said.

“We are working on creating an implementation advisory group which will include all of the SMART locals in the state,” Daniel said. “Our main goal right now is to make sure the state code agencies and inspectors view us as a resource as they prepare to enforce this legislation come Jan. 1. Our locals and training centers are prepared to tackle the certification and training side of things; we just need to make sure the enforcement will happen.”

Representatives from the National Energy Management Institute (NEMI), the National Energy Management Institute Committee (NEMIC) and the ICB have all been on hand to assist Local 265 in passing this legislation and educating stakeholders. They will continue to be available during the implementation phase as the implementation advisory group works to get enforcement officials involved.