Could Connecticut’s state building inspector overrule a local official’s code interpretation?

Plain-English summary

Connecticut's codes committee asked in 2005 whether the State Building Inspector could do more than issue general interpretations of the building code. The AG said yes. When the inspector had reason to think a local official or appeals board misconstrued the code, the statute authorized review of that specific decision, consultation with the local body and an appropriate order.

That meant the inspector could apply the code to facts of a particular project while reviewing a local decision. The opinion did not limit the inspector to answering abstract code questions.

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 2005. Subsequent statutory amendments, court decisions, or later AG opinions may have changed the analysis. Treat this page as historical context, not current legal advice. Verify current law before relying on any specific rule, deadline, or remedy mentioned here.

State building inspector at the time

Conn. Gen. Stat. § 29-252(d) allowed review of a local decision on a particular project where there was reason to believe the code had been misconstrued or misinterpreted. After consultation and a finding of error, the inspector could issue a code interpretation and an order deemed appropriate.

Local officials and builders at the time

The AG treated local building decisions as reviewable on their application of the State Building Code, rather than immune from state level correction. The review process depended on the statutory reason to believe a misreading had occurred.

Common questions

Q: Could the state inspector review a local building decision about one project?
A: Yes. The AG said the statute allowed review of a particular local code decision.

Q: Could the inspector issue an order after finding a code misinterpretation?
A: Yes. After consulting the local official or board, the inspector could issue an appropriate order under the statute.

Q: Was the inspector limited to general code interpretations?
A: No. The opinion distinguished the general interpretation power from the separate power to review local decisions.

Background and statutory framework

Conn. Gen. Stat. § 29-252(c) authorized official interpretations of the State Building Code. The AG read Conn. Gen. Stat. § 29-252(d) as an additional power to review a local official or appeals board decision and issue an order when the code was misapplied. He found that reading supported by the statutory text and legislative history.

Citations and references

Statutes cited in the opinion: Conn. Gen. Stat. § 29-252(d); Conn. Gen. Stat. § 29-252(c).

Source

• Landing page: https://portal.ct.gov/AG/Opinions
• Opinion page: https://portal.ct.gov/ag/opinions/2005-formal-opinions/leo-belval-appeal-panel-chairman-codes-and-standards-committee-2005032-formal-opinion-attorney-gener

Original opinion text

Leo Belval, Appeal Panel Chairman, Codes and Standards Committee, 2005-032, Formal Opinion, Attorney General, State of Connecticut

Attorney General's Opinion

Attorney General, Richard Blumenthal

December 6, 2005

Leo Belval, Appeal Panel Chairman

Codes and Standards Committee

Department of Public Safety

1111 Country Club Road

Middletown, Connecticut 06457

Dear Chairman Belval:

You have requested our advice regarding the scope of the State Building Inspector’s authority over local building officials. Specifically, you have asked whether section 29-252(d) of the Connecticut General Statutes merely gives the State Building Inspector the authority to issue interpretations as part of the process of implementing the State Building Code, or, instead, gives the State Building Inspector the authority to review the actions of a local building official in specific situations, make factual determinations and order the local official to take appropriate action based on those determinations. You advised us that it has long been the practice of the “State Building Inspector to act on complaints regarding the actions of a local building official by reviewing the complaint, inspecting the subject premises, interviewing appropriate persons including the local official, interpreting the code as applied and then issuing appropriate orders.”

The State Building Inspector, as a principal author of the State Building Code,1may issue official interpretations of the Code or its particular provisions upon the request of any person. Conn. Gen. Stat. § 29-252(c)2. As discussed below, it is our opinion that the State Building Inspector also has the clear statutory authority to review the actions of a local building official to determine whether the local building official has misconstrued or misinterpreted the State Building Code and, if so, issue any orders the State Building Inspector deems to be appropriate.

The State Building Inspector’s authority over the administration of the State Building Code and local building officials is specifically set forth in Conn. Gen. Stat. § 29-252(d) as follows:

The State Building Inspector or his designee shall review a decision by a local building official or board of appeals appointed pursuant to section 29-266 when he has reason to believe that such official or board has misconstrued or misinterpreted any provision of the State Building Code. If upon review and after consultation with such official or board he determines that a provision of the code has been misconstrued or misinterpreted, he shall issue an interpretation of said code and may issue any order he deems appropriate.

Conn. Gen. Stat. § 29-252(d). See also Edelstein v. Shansky, 2002 Conn. Super. Lexis 573 (2002).

The plain language of this section gives the State Building Inspector authority to review any decision made by a local building official construing the State Building Code on a particular project to determine whether the local building official has misconstrued or misinterpreted the State Building Code as it relates to that project and, if so, issue "any orders he deems appropriate."

In construing statutes, courts must ascertain and give effect to the apparent intent of the legislature. State v. Champagne, 206 Conn. 421, 428 (1988); In Re Sheldon G., 216 Conn. 563, 568 (1990). "To discern the intent of the legislature, we look first to the words of the statute.” In Re Sheldon G., 216 Conn. at 568. The legislative history of Conn. Gen. Stat. § 29-252(d) supports the plain and unambiguous language of that statute.

The provisions of subsection (d) were added to Conn. Gen. Stat. § 29-252 upon the recommendation of the Governor’s Building and Construction Advisory Committee following the building collapse at L’Ambiance Plaza in Bridgeport, Connecticut, on April 23, 1987. Public Act 88-359 implemented the committee’s recommendations. Floor debates and testimony before a legislative committee shed some light on the scope of the review the State Building Inspector was expected to conduct.

Senator Marie Herbst explained the purpose for subsection (d) in the following manner: “It grants the State Building Inspector the authority to make official interpretations of the State Building Code, monitor code enforcement on the local level and to overrule local officials on the interpretations of the code through proper procedures.” Conn. Sen. Proc., Vol. 31, Part 10, 1988 Sess., p. 3331 (May 3, 1988)

It is clear from the legislative history that, in enacting the language of Conn. Gen. Stat. § 29-252(d), the legislature intended to expand the authority of the State Building Inspector to review interpretations of the State Building Code made by local building officials, and issue any orders the State Building Inspector deems appropriate when he determines that the local building official has misconstrued or misinterpreted the code.

Accordingly, it is our opinion that the State Building Inspector may review the actions of a local building official in a specific situation to determine whether the local building official has misconstrued or misinterpreted the State Building Code as it relates to the specific situation and, if so, issue any orders the State Building Inspector deems appropriate.

Very Truly Yours,

RICHARD BLUMENTHAL

ATTORNEY GENERAL

Henri Alexandre

Assistant Attorney General

1 "The State Building Inspector and the Codes and Standards Committee shall, jointly, with the approval of the Commissioner of Public Safety, adopt and administer a State Building Code based on a nationally recognized model building code for the purpose of regulating the design, construction and use of buildings or structures to be erected and the alteration of buildings or structures already erected and make such amendments thereto as they, from time to time, deem necessary or desirable." Conn. Gen. Stat. § 29-252(a).

2 Conn. Gen. Stat. § 29-252(c) provides: "The State Building Inspector or his designee may issue official interpretations of the State Building Code, including interpretations of the applicability of any provision of the code, upon the request of any person. The State Building Inspector shall compile and index each interpretation and shall publish such interpretations at periodic intervals not exceeding four months."