Visalia Municipal Code Ch. 8.20 California Fire Code

A. There is adopted for the purpose of prescribing regulations governing conditions hazardous to life and property from fire, hazardous materials or explosion, that certain document, not less than one copy is filed in the office of the Fire Department and one in the office of the Building Division of City of Visalia, being marked and designated as the California Fire Code, 2025 edition published by the International Code Council, including sections 104.4 Right of Entry, 111.1 Authority to disconnect service utilities, 112 Means of Appeals, 311 Vacant Premises, 503 Fire Apparatus Access Roads and Appendix Chapters D (Fire Apparatus Access Roads as amended by section L), I (Fire Protection Systems - Noncompliant Conditions), N (Indoor Trade Shows and Exhibitions) and P (Temporary Haunted Houses, Ghost Walks and Similar Amusement Uses), as published by the International Code Council, be and is hereby adopted as the Fire Code of the City of Visalia, in the State of California regulating and governing the safeguarding of life and property from fire and explosion hazards arising from the storage, handling and use of hazardous substances, materials and devices, and from conditions hazardous to life or property in the occupancy of buildings and premises as herein provided; providing for the issuance of permits and collection of fees therefor; and each and all of the regulations, provisions, penalties, conditions and terms of said Fire Code on file in the office of the City of Visalia are hereby referred to, adopted, and made a part hereof, as if fully set out in this chapter, with the additions, insertions, deletions and changes, if any, prescribed this Section 8.20.010.

B. All further references shall be to the 2025 California Fire Code, in Subsection 101.1 of the, the term “City of Visalia” shall be inserted.

C. Subsection 104.4.1.1. Warrant cost recovery, is added to read as follows:

104.4.1.1 Warrant cost recovery. Cost to the City of Visalia for obtaining and executing an Inspection Warrant is the responsibility of the property owner and steps to recover the costs will be taken, up to and including a lien against the property. Recovery costs may include staff time, legal fees, and court fees.

D. Subsection 113.4 Change: Violation penalties, is amended to read as follows:

113.4 Violations penalties. Persons who shall violate a provision of this code or shall fail to comply with any of the requirements thereof or who shall erect, install, alter, repair or do work in violation of the approved construction documents or directive of the fire code official, or a permit or certificate used under provision of this code, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, infraction or both, alternatively violations may be subject to an administrative fine or penalty. Penalties shall be as prescribed in local Ordinance Section 1.12.010. Each day that a violation continues after due notice has been served shall be deemed a separate offense.

E. Subsection 113.4.2 Cost of abatement, is added to read as follows:

113.4.2 Cost of abatement. Cost of abatement is the responsibility of the property owner and steps to recover the costs will be taken, up to and including a lien against the property. Property owners shall be notified of any action taken as soon as possible. Recovery costs may include staff time, contractor’s costs, legal fees and any and all cost associated with the abatement.

F. Subsection 114.4 Change: Failure to comply, is amended to read as follows:

114.4 Failure to Comply. Any person who shall continue any work after having been served with a stop work order, except such work as that person is directed to perform to remove a violation or unsafe condition, shall be liable to a fine prescribed in local Ordinance Section 1.12.010.

G. Subsection 108.7 Added: Visalia Fire Department Fee Schedule, is added to read as follows:

108.7 Visalia Fire Department Fee Schedule. The Fire Chief may establish a schedule of fees, as approved by the City Council, to be charged and collected for plan checking, required inspection services, and for the issuance of permits pursuant to Section 105 of this Code. In addition, this schedule may include a fire service Cost Recovery fee to be charged to any person, firm, corporation or business that through negligence, violation of the law or as a result of carelessness is responsible for the cause of any fire service response to the scene of such an incident. A copy of the fee schedule shall be kept in the office of the City Clerk and the Office of the Fire Department and shall be available for public inspection.

H. Subsection 105.5.36 Exception, is amended to read as follows:

105.5.36 Exception: Recreational Fires, see Visalia Municipal Code Ordinance, Open Burning, Section 8.44.010.

I. Subsection 904.4.7 shall be added to read as follows:

904.4.7 Tamper Protection. All exterior risers, drain/test valves and backflow devices shall be protected from unauthorized tampering by approved means. Protection method shall be indicated on building plans.

J. Subsection 912.2.3 and 912.2.3.1 Buildings provided with a fire sprinkler system, is added to read as follows:

912.2.3 Buildings provided with a fire sprinkler system. Any newly constructed building provided with a NFPA 13 or NFPA 13R fire sprinkler system shall provide a fire hydrant within fifty (50) feet of the fire department connection. Where an existing building is retrofitted with a NFPA 13 or NFPA 13R fire sprinkler system a fire hydrant shall be provided within seventy-five (75) feet of the fire department connection.

912.2.3.1 An additional twenty-five (25) feet of distance between a fire hydrant and the fire department connection (FDC) may be granted by the Fire Marshal when a fire sprinkler system density is designed with an additional 25%.

Exceptions: The additional twenty-five (25) feet of distance between a fire hydrant and the fire department connection (FDC) shall not be permitted for Pipe scheduled and ESFR sprinkler systems.

K. Section D106 where required, “apparatus access roads” shall be available to local traffic at all times.

L. Section D106.1 (Exception) shall be deleted in its entirety.

M. Subsection D107.1 Shall read as follows:

D107.1 One- or two-family dwelling residential developments. Developments of one- or two-family dwellings where the number of dwelling units exceeds 30 shall be provided with two separate and approved access roads that are available to local traffic at all times.

N. Subsection D107.1, Exception 1. shall be deleted in its entirety.

(Ord. 2025-14 § 2 (part), 2025: Ord. 2022-15 § 2 (part), 2022 )

A. The fire marshal under the authority of the fire chief is hereby authorized to enforce the provisions of the California Fire Code and shall have the authority to render interpretations of the code, and to adopt policies, procedures, rules and regulations in order to clarify the application of its provisions. Such interpretations, policies, procedures, rules and regulations shall be in compliance with the intent and purpose of the code and shall not have the effect of waiving requirements specifically provided for in the code.

B. The fire marshal may authorize fire inspectors and other members of the fire department as deemed necessary to enforce the provisions of the fire code.

(Ord. 2025-14 § 2 (part), 2025: Ord. 2022-15 § 2 (part), 2022)

Fire Code Official. Whenever the term "fire code official" is used in the California Fire Code, it means fire marshal of the fire department.

Municipality. Whenever the term "municipality" is used in the California Fire Code, it means the City of Visalia.

(Ord. 2025- 14 § 2 (part), 2025: Ord. 2022-15 § 2 (part), 2022)

The limits referring to storage of flammable liquids in outside aboveground tanks and bulk storage of liquefied petroleum gases in the California Fire Code is to be restricted shall be regulated by the city zoning ordinance. Where the zoning ordinance is silent about the permitted or conditional use the omission shall be considered prima facie evidence of clear intent to prohibit the act.

(Ord. 2025-14 § 2 (part), 2025: Ord. 2022-15 § 2 (part), 2022)

Where there are practical difficulties involved in carrying out the provisions of this code, the fire marshal shall have the authority to grant modifications for individual cases, provided the fire marshal shall first find that special individual reason makes the strict letter of the code impractical, and the modification is in compliance with the intent and purpose of the code and that such modification does not lessen health, life and fire safety requirements. The details of action granting modifications shall be recorded and entered in the files of the department of fire prevention.

(Ord. 2025-14 § 2 (part), 2025: Ord. 2022-15 § 2 (part), 2022)

The fire marshal shall have power to approve alternative materials and methods where he or she finds that the proposed design is satisfactory and complies with the intent of the provisions of the California Fire Code. Where the alternative material, design or method of construction is not approved, the fire marshal shall respond in writing, stating the reasons why the alternative was not approved.

(Ord. 2025-14 § 2 (part), 2025: Ord. 2022-15 § 2 (part), 2022)

Whenever the fire marshal and or chief of the fire department disapprove an application or refuse to grant a permit applied for, or when it is claimed that the provisions of the code do not apply or that the true intent and meaning of the code have been misconstrued or wrongly interpreted, the applicant may appeal the decision of the fire marshal and or chief of the fire department to the board of appeals as established by California Fire Code § 112 within thirty (30) days from the date of the decision.

(Ord. 2025-14 § 2 (part), 2025: Ord. 2022-15 § 2 (part), 2022)

A. The city manager, the chief of the fire department, fire marshal and the chief building official shall act as a committee to determine and specify, after giving affected persons an opportunity to be heard, any new materials, processes, or occupancy, which shall require permits, in addition to those now enumerated in said code.

B. The fire chief shall post such list in conspicuous place in his/her office and distribute copies thereof to interested persons.

(Ord. 2025-14 § 2 (part), 2025: Ord. 2022-15 § 2 (part), 2022: Prior code § 4408)

The capacity of compartments of tank trucks used in the delivery of Class I flammable liquids in retail lots and for retail purposes within the city shall be limited to one thousand two hundred (1 ,200) gallons.

(Ord. 2025-14 § 2 (part), 2025: Ord. 2022-15 § 2 (part), 2022: Prior code § 4450)

The chief of the fire department may, at his discretion, issue special permits for the entrance into the city of tank trucks of greater than one thousand two hundred (1,200) gallon compartment capacity for the purpose of making delivery of Class I flammable liquids to retail distribution stations, but not otherwise; provided, such permits shall be restricted to deliveries at locations where unusual hazards will not be created by such larger capacity trucks; provided, that no such tank trucks, carrying Class I flammable liquid, shall be parked or left unattended on any street, highway, avenue or alley of the city.

(Ord. 2025-14 § 2 (part), 2025: Ord. 2022-15 § 2 (part), 2022: Prior code § 4451)

Any person who shall violate any of the provisions of the code adopted or fail to comply therewith, or who shall violate or fail to comply with any order made thereunder, or who shall build in violation of any detailed statement of specification or plans submitted and approved thereunder or any certificate or permit issued thereunder, and from which no appeal has been taken or who shall fail to comply with such an order as affirmed or modified by the city attorney or by a court of competent jurisdiction, within the time fixed herein, shall severally for each and every such violation and noncompliance respectively be guilty of a misdemeanor or infraction as determined by the city attorney, and shall be assessed administrative penalties pursuant to the provisions of Chapter 1.13 of the Visalia Municipal Code. These penalties may accrue and each day the property is not in compliance shall be considered another violation.

(Ord. 2025-14 § 2 (part), 2025: Ord. 2022-15 § 2 (part), 2022)