------CITY of ALBUQUERQUE
TWENTY SEVENTH COUNCIL
COUNCIL BILL NO. O-26-22 ENACTMENT NO. _____________________
SPONSORED BY: Dan Champine, Brook Bassan, Renée Grout
ORDINANCE
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Amending Section 14-3-3-2 Of The Uniform Housing Code To Establish Cooling System Performance Requirements (Champine, Bassan, Grout)
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WHEREAS, Adequate cooling is essential to the health and wellbeing of tenants; and
WHEREAS, Cooling systems are a necessity in this region and the City’s Uniform Housing Code requires cooling facilities in all dwelling units; and
WHEREAS, Changing weather patterns have extended the periods during which cooling is required; and
WHEREAS, Cooling systems must effectively reduce indoor temperatures relative to outdoor conditions to be functional.
BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL, THE GOVERNING BODY OF THE CITY OF ALBUQUERQUE:
SECTION 1. The Uniform Housing Code, ROA 1994, Section 14-3-3-2 is amended as follows:
§ 14-3-3-2 MECHANICAL REQUIREMENTS.
(A) Heating, Cooling, and Ventilation.
(1) Heating and Cooling.
(a) Every dwelling unit and guest room shall be provided with heating facilities capable of maintaining a room temperature of 68° F at a point of three feet above the floor in all habitable rooms. Such facilities shall be installed and maintained in a safe condition and in accordance with the City’s currently adopted New Mexico Mechanical Code as adopted in the UAC.
(b) Unvented fuel-burning heaters shall not be permitted. All heating devices or appliances shall be of an approved type. Ovens, stoves or ranges, or other cooking appliances shall not be used for the purpose of heating any portion of a dwelling. Approved portable space heaters may only be used as the sole source of heating on a temporary basis when the permanent heating system is being repaired or replaced.
(c) Every dwelling unit shall be provided with cooling facilities.
(i) Acceptable cooling facilities are fixtures that are permanently attached to the unit, including but not limited to: evaporative (“swamp”) coolers, central air conditioning, heat pumps, radiant cooling, window units, and mini-splits.
(ii) Non-acceptable cooling facilities are temporary and/or portable devices such as fans, mobile evaporative coolers, and portable air conditioners, circulating devices such as ceiling fans, and ventilation systems and when used as the sole source of cooling for a unit, do not satisfy the requirements of this Section. These types of cooling facilities may only be used as a sole source of cooling on a temporary basis when the permanent acceptable cooling facility is being repaired or replaced.
[(iii) Cooling Performance. Cooling facilities shall be maintained in good working order and operated as necessary to provide adequate cooling to habitable rooms. During periods when the outdoor temperature is 85 degrees Fahrenheit or higher, the permanent cooling system shall be capable of maintaining an indoor temperature that is at least 15 degrees Fahrenheit lower than the outdoor temperature, measured under normal operating conditions.
Temperature measurements may be taken at a point approximately three feet above the floor in a habitable room. A cooling system that is not operational or that fails to provide the required temperature reduction shall be considered not properly operative.
Temporary or portable cooling devices shall not be used as a substitute for required permanent cooling facilities; however, such devices may be used to supplement the operation of a permanent cooling system in order to assist in reducing indoor temperatures.]
(2) Electrical Equipment.
(a) All electrical equipment, wiring and appliances shall be installed and maintained in a safe manner in accordance with all applicable laws. All electrical equipment shall be of an approved type.
(b) Every habitable room shall contain at least two supplied electric convenience outlets or one such convenience outlet and one supplied electric light fixture. Every toilet compartment, bathroom, laundry room, furnace room and public hallway shall contain at least one supplied electric light fixture.
(3) Ventilation. Ventilation for rooms and areas and for fuel-burning appliances shall be provided as required in the Mechanical Code and in this code. Where mechanical ventilation is provided in lieu of the natural ventilation required by § 14-3-2-2(C), such mechanical ventilating system shall be maintained in operation during the occupancy of any building or portion thereof.
SECTION 2. SEVERABILITY. If any section, paragraph, sentence, clause, word or phrase of this Ordinance is for any reason held to be invalid or unenforceable by any court of competent jurisdiction, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining provisions of this Ordinance. The Council hereby declares that it would have passed this Ordinance and each section, paragraph, sentence, clause, word or phrase thereof irrespective of any provision being declared unconstitutional or otherwise invalid.
SECTION 3. COMPILATION. SECTION 1 of this Ordinance amends, is incorporated in, and is to be compiled as part of the Revised Ordinances of Albuquerque, New Mexico, 1994.
SECTION 4. EFFECTIVE DATE. This Ordinance takes effect five days after publication by title and general summary.