1.1 	A bill for an act
1.2 	relating to building codes; requiring window screens in certain residential 
1.3 	dwellings to comply with safety standards; creating a window safety program; 
1.4 	amending Minnesota Statutes 2006, section 16B.61, by adding a subdivision.
1.5 	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

1.6 	Section 1. Minnesota Statutes 2006, section 16B.61, is amended by adding a 
1.7 	subdivision to read:
1.8 		Subd. 3b.Window fall prevention device code. The commissioner of labor and 
1.9 	industry shall adopt rules for window fall prevention devices as part of the state Building 
1.10 	Code. Window fall prevention devices include, but are not limited to, safety screens, 
1.11 	hardware, guards, and other devices that comply with the standards established by the 
1.12 	commissioner of labor and industry. The rules shall require compliance with standards 
1.13 	for window fall prevention devices developed by ASTM International, contained in the 
1.14 	International Building Code as the model language with amendments deemed necessary to 
1.15 	coordinate with the other adopted building codes in Minnesota. The rules shall establish a 
1.16 	scope that includes the applicable building occupancies, and the types, locations and sizes 
1.17 	of windows that will require the installation of fall devices. The rules will be effective July 
1.18 	1, 2009. The commissioner shall report to the legislature on the status of the rulemaking 
1.19 	on or before February 15, 2008.

1.20 	Sec. 2. WINDOW SAFETY EDUCATION.
 1.21 	The commissioner of health shall create in the department's current educational 
1.22 	safety program a component targeted at parents and caregivers of young children to 
1.23 	provide awareness of the need to take precautions to prevent children from falling 
2.1 	through open windows. The commissioner of health shall consult with representatives 
2.2 	of the residential building industry, the window products industry, the child safety 
2.3 	advocacy community, and the Department of Labor and Industry to create the window 
2.4 	safety program component. The program shall include the gathering of window fall data 
2.5 	resulting in severe injury in order to measure the effectiveness of the safety program. The 
2.6 	commissioner of health may consult with other child safety advocacy groups, experts, and 
2.7 	interested parties in the development and implementation of the window safety program. 
2.8 	The commissioner of health shall prepare and submit a final report on the window safety 
2.9 	program to the legislature on or before March 1, 2011. The commissioner shall prepare 
2.10 	and submit a yearly progress report to the legislature on or before March 1 of each year 
2.11 	beginning in 2008 until the submission of the final report. The final report shall include a 
2.12 	summary of the safety program, the impact of the program on child window falls, and any 
2.13 	recommendations for further study or action.