An act relating to welding safety., the official text

UNOFFICIAL COPY                                                    26 RS SB 98/EN

1   AN ACT relating to welding safety.

2 Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Kentucky:

3   SECTION 1. A NEW SECTION OF KRS CHAPTER 198B IS CREATED TO

4 READ AS FOLLOWS:

5 (1) As used in this section, unless the context otherwise requires:

6   (a) "Accredited testing facility" means a facility that tests and certifies welders

7   and welding inspectors, and which has been accredited by the AWS;

8   (b) "ASME" means the American Society of Mechanical Engineers;

9   (c) "AWS" means the American Welding Society;

10  (d) "Certified welding inspector" means a person who has been certified by the

11  AWS to inspect structural steel welding projects and is independent of a

12  Kentucky building program having jurisdiction;

13  (e) "D1.1" means the current version of the Structural Welding Code-Steel,

14  approved American National Standard from the AWS;

15  (f) "D1.5" means the current version of the Bridge Welding Code, approved

16  American National Standard from the AWS jointly with the American

17  Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials;

18  (g) "Structural steel welding" means structural welds, weld repair, the

19  structural system, and the welding of all primary steel members of a

20  structure per D1.1 and D1.5 established by AWS. Where ASME work is

21  required, it shall be done by ASME certified welders; and

22  (h) "Welding standards" means the specifications, guidelines, tests, and other

23  methods used to develop a system of quality control to ensure that welding is

24  conducted in such a manner that all welds must meet, at a minimum, D1.1

25  and D1.5 standards established by the AWS.

26 (2) To ensure the safety, quality, and integrity of structural steel welding and that all

27  welding standards are met, the following requirements shall be mandated by

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    UNOFFICIAL COPY                                                  26 RS SB 98/EN

1   general contractors, project managers, contractors, and subcontractors in all

2   projects involving structural steel welding where the design professional

3   responsible for the project includes the D1.1 or D1.5 in the job specifications:

4   (a) Welders performing structural steel welding on a project shall have been

5   tested and certified by:

6   1. An accredited testing facility; or

7   2. An individual who has been accredited by the AWS to test and certify

8   welders and welding inspectors. This individual could be anyone who

9   has been certified by the AWS to inspect structural steel welding

10  projects; and

11  (b) Structural steel welding performed on a project shall meet welding

12  standards.

13 (3) This section shall only apply to projects:

14  (a) Occurring pursuant to state government contracts; and

15  (b) When requested by the contracting state government entity.

16 (4) This section shall not apply to welding projects performed or requested by a

17  homeowner or farmer on the premises of the homeowner or farmer.

18  Section 2. This Act takes effect January 1, 2027.

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