THE BUILDING ACT (Act 0[2011) - Houses of Parliament

76 Pages·2011·2.57 MB·English

THE BUILDING ACT
(Act 0[2011)
ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS
Part I. Preliminarv
I. Short title and commencement.
2. Interpretation.
3. Objects of Act.
4. Application of Act.
5. Application of new building regulations to building work.
6. Savings of other laws. etc.
Part II. Regulatory and Enfhrcement Responsihilities
Local Building Authority
7. Designation and jurisdiction of Local Building Authority.
8. Functions of Local Building Authority.
Building Officials
9. Appointment and designation of building officials.
Building Surveyor
10. Functions of Building Surveyor.
11. Building Surveyor to submit returns.
12. Return to indicate completion of works.
13. Surveys of building by Surveyor acting privately.
Part III. National Building Code
14. National Building Code.
15. Designation of Standards Authority.
16. Functions of Standards Authority.
ii
Part IV Building Permits
17. Requirement for building permit.
18. Application for building permit.
19. Requirements regarding notIce of intention to build.
20. Emergency building work bcfore notice given.
21. Applicant to notify interested persons of specific features of building
work.
22 Objection to proposed building work.
23. Consultation on proposed building work.
24. Grant or refusal of building permit.
25. Non-transferability and validity of permit.
2(). Variation, modification, etc. of permit.
27. Suspension of building permit.
211. Revocation of building permit.
29. National monuments and protected national heritage.
Part V En{(Jrcement Inspection and Monitoring
30. Monitoring of building work.
3 I. Certificate of compliance.
32. Guidelines for monitoring.
33. Notice to be evidence as against builder of intended works.
34. Offence of failure to give notice.
35. Power of building official, etc., to enter and inspect building, work, and
offence to obstruct.
36. Offence of failure to admit to premises for determination of exemption.
37. Notice of building breach;
38. Contents of notice of building breach.
11l
39. Power of Authority to enter and remedy breach.
40. Liability for penalty and expenses.
Stop Sotices
41. Stop notices.
Enforcelllcnt Notice
4.:'. Enforcement notice.
43. Authority's power to enter and remedy breach.
Injunction
44. Application for injunction.
Emergency Order
45. Emergency Order
46. Duration of emergency order.
47. Cancellation of emergency order.

4R. Authority may enter where emergency order not complied.

Access
49. Access for persons with disabilities, display of symbol of access.
Part VI. Dangerous Structures
50. Interpretation in Part VI.

5 I. Authority to cause survey of dangerous structure.

52. Surveyor's certificate.
53. Proceedings after certificate of dangerous structure.
54. Authority to act where owner fails.
55. Recovery of expenses by action.
56. Power of sale to recover expenses.
57. Power of court to order removal from dangerous structure.
IV
Part VB. Partv Structures
58. Building owner and adjoining o·wner.
59. Right of building owner, party structure.
60. Rights of adjoining owner, party structure.
61. Rules as to exercise of rights by building owners and adjoining
owners.
62. Builders owner may enter premises to execute work.
63. Security to be given by building owner if required.
64. Expenses in respect of any party structure.
65. Duty to deliver expenses amount to adjoining owners.
66. Adjoining owner disputing amount.
67. Amount deemed to be accepted where not dispute.
68. Liability of adjoining owner for certain expenses.
69. Offence where building owner fails to perfOnll certain conditions.
Part VIII. Appeals
70. Establishment of Appeal Tribunal.
71. Jurisdiction of Tribunal.
72. Conduct of appeal.
Part IX. Regulation o( Building PractitionCl's
73. Establishment of Building Practitioners Board.
74. Functions of the Board.
75. Registrar of Licensed Building Practitioners.
76. Register of Licensed Building Practitioners.
77. Corrections of registers.
78. Application for licensing.
79. Licensing.
80. Qualifications for licensing.
81. Special licence.
v
82. Temporary licence.
83. Additional qualifications.
84. Duty of Registrar regarding register.
85. Entitlement to recover fees, etc.
86. Prohibitions.
87. Improper licensing.
Building Advisory Council
88. Establishment of Building Advisory Council.
89. Functions of Building Advisory Council.
Part X. Miscellaneous
90. Protection of Building Officials.
91. Regulations.
92. Publication of regulations and Minister's overriding powers.
93. Minister may amend monetary penalties and Schedules.
94. Act Binds Crown.
95. Savings and transitional.
96. Repeals.
SCHEDULES.
A BILL
ENTITLED
AN ACT to repeal the Kingston and St. Andrew Building Act
and the Parish Councils Building Act and make new
provisions for the regulation ofthe building industry: to
facilitate the adoption and efficient application ofnational
building standards to be called the National Building
Code of Jamaica for ensuring safety in the building
environment, enhancing amenities and promoting
sustainable development: and for connected matters.
BE IT ENACTED by The Queen's Most Excellent Majesty. by and
with the advice and consent of the Senate and House of
Representatives of Jamaica. and by the authority of the same. as
follows:­
Part I. PreliminwT
1. This Act may be cited as the Building Act. 201 L and shall ShCHl title and
come into operation on a date to be appointed by the Minister by C0mmrnce­
mt'llt.
notice published in the Gazette.
2

Interpretation. 2_ In this Act­
"amenities" means such quality or condition of a place
or area as contributes to its pleasantness, hannony,
and better enjoyment, and includes open spaces,
parks, recreation grounds, and playgrounds;
"Appeal Tribunal" means the Tribunal established by
section 70;
"applicant" means an applicant for a building pennit
pursuant to section 18;
"authorized person" means a person who is authorized
by a Local Building Authority, under this Act, to
undertake or perfonn any function which the Local
Building Authority is empowered to undertake or
perform;
"builder" means the person who has been employed,
contracted or otherwise designated to execute
building work in accordance with a building pennit,
or where no such person is so employed, contracted
or otherwise designated, the pennit holder or his
agent;
"building--­
(a) means a physical structure, temporary
structure, and any part of a building, or
any architectural or engineering product
or work erected or constructed on, over
or under land or the sea or other body of
water; and
(b) includes a domestic building, public
building and a building ofthe public class;
"Building Advisory Councir- means the Building
Advisory Council established by section 88:
3
""building official" means the Building Surveyor and any person
who is employed or designated by a Local Building
Authority pursuant to section 9( I):
"building permit" means a building permit granted by the
relevant Local BuildingAuthority under section 24(1)(a):
"building practitioner" means a person engaged in any phase
of the design, construction, repair, demolition,
modification, erection or supervision ofa building:
"building professional" means a person engaged in any phase
of the design, construction, repair, demolition,
modification, erection or supervision ofa building who
is registered under an Act but does not include a building
official;
"Building Surveyor" means­
(a) the City Engineer of the Kingston and St.
Andrew Corporation:
(b) the Superintendent of Parochial Roads and
Works of a Parish Councilor a Municipal
Council; or
(c) any building official appointed for the purposes
of this Act by a Local Building Authority to
carry out the functions ofthe Building Surveyor:
"building work" means the construction, alteration, repair,
demolition, erection, or extension of a building, or part
thereof, and inc1udes­
(a) any increase in height or floor space of a
building;
(b) any addition to or alteration ofa building that
affects or is likely to affect its drainage or
sanitary arrangements or its soundness;
(c) any addition to or alteration of a building,
whether done before or after completion ofthe
4
building. that departs in any particular from
any plan or specification approved at any timc
hy any authority cmpowered under any
enactment to approve the plan or specification
in respect ofthat building;
(d) any addition to or alteration ofa huilding that
materially affects or is likcly to materially
affect the huilding in any manner:
(e) work of any kind declared by the Minister to
be building work for the purposes ofthis Act;
and
(t) any other operation normally undertaken by a
person carrying on the business of building
construction;
"buildings of the warehouse class" includes a warehouse.
factory, brewery, t()Undry and any huilding dcsigncd or
used for thc purpose of the storage, manuf~lcturing,
fabrication or assembly ofgoods or products that is neither
a public huilding nor a domestic building;
"certi ficatc ofcompliancc" means a certificate issued hy the
Local Building Authority pursuant to section 31 ;
"certificate of occupancy" means a certificate issued by the
Local BuildingAuthority pursuant to section S(e);
"domestic building" includes a dwelling house and any other
building not being a public building or a building ofthe
warehouse class;
"emergency" means a present or imminent event in respect of
which a Local Building Authority reasonably believes
prompt eo-ordination of action or special regulation of
persons or property shall be undertaken to protect the
health, safety or welfare ofpcople or to limit damage to
property;
5
"I-Codes" means the International Codes published by the
International Codes Council as adopted, from time to time,
by the Standards Authority pursuant to section 16 (1),
including the~
(a) International Codes Council Performance
Code;
(b) International Building Code;
(c) International Energy Conservation Code;
(d) International Existing Building Code;
(e) International Fire Code:
(f) International Fuel Gas Code;
(g) International Green Construction Code;
(h) International Mechanical Code;
(i) International Plumbing Code;
CD International Private Sewage Disposal Code;
(k) International Property Maintenance Code;
(I) International Residential Code; and
(m) International Swimming Pool and Spa Code.
"international symbol of access" means the symbol adopted
by the International Society for Rehabilitation of the
Disabled at the Eleventh World Congress on the
Rehabilitation ofthe Disabled held at Dublin, Ireland in
September, 1969;
"Jamaica" includes the Exclusive Economic Zonc established
under section 3 ofthe Exclusive Economic Zone Act;
"licensed building practitioner" means a person who is licensed
as a building practitioner under section 79:
"Local Building Authority" has thc meaning assigned to it in
section 7;