Building Safety

Effective March 1st, 2021 Inspection of Occupied homes and projects. Beginning March 1^st, 2021, Adams County Building Safety Division will resume inspections in person of occupied homes and spaces. Below is the general policy that both the occupants, contractor, and inspectors must follow while conducting these inspections.

GENERAL  POLICY

This policy establishes inspection protocol for county building and electrical inspectors during periods that the County of Adams is under public health orders from the CDPHE or local health departments.

These changes are in response to updated CDPHE’s and local health orders and are being put in place to help protect inspection staff as well as job site personnel.

Interior inspections of occupied residential units may be performed as long as CDC Recommended Safety Guidelines are followed.  These guidelines include at a minimum the following:

• The Inspector will walk only with the required individuals necessary for the inspection. 
• The areas of the building requested to be inspected are only to be occupied by the inspection staff and individuals participating in the inspection. No other workers to be located or working in those areas. 
• Maintain a minimum of 6-foot distancing from everyone on the project site.
• Masks (PPE) will be required by all individuals that are participating in the inspection.
• When necessary the inspectors will give reminders to contractors and customers on distancing practices
• Inspectors shall maintain the highest level of personal sanitation including hand sanitizer and frequently washing hands and gloves.
• The inspector will ask the following three questions of the occupants or contractor:

1. Have you or anyone in your household been diagnosed with or had a known exposure to Covid-19 in the past 10 days?
2. Is anyone in your home under quarantine due to exposure to Covid-19?
3. Has anyone occupying the premises experienced the following symptoms in the last ten days: fever, sore throat, cough, or shortness of breath?

If the answer is “yes” to any of these questions, staff will not enter the home and the inspection will be scheduled and completed as a virtual inspection by the Inspector that day.

• If any of these conditions cannot be met the inspector will not enter the residence
  • It will always be up to the inspector to determine if it is a safe environment in which to perform their duties.

• For virtual inspections, the Inspector will report to the site address to conduct the inspection. Someone with general knowledge of the installation needs to be onsite with a smart phone or tablet, a flashlight or head lamp and access to each unit.
• These inspection protocols are effective immediately and will remain in effect until public health orders are modified or lifted.

Procedure for Contemporaneous Reviews of Electrical and Plumbing License and Apprenticeship Requirements

This standard procedure has been developed for conducting contemporaneous reviews to ensure consistent, timely and efficient enforcement of Colorado's electrical and plumbing licensure and apprenticeship requirements.

Inspections of projects requiring an electrical or plumbing permit must include a contemporaneous review of electrical and plumbing licenses, when possible.

Contemporaneous reviews may include a full or partial review of the electricians, plumbers and apprentices working at a job site being inspected, at the discretion of the inspector, based on the inspector's familiarity with the installers or other relevant factors. Inspectors may perform contemporaneous reviews at any time.

Inspectors may conduct occasional, random, on-site inspections while actual plumbing or electrical work is being conducted, with a focus on large commercial and multi-family residential projects.

If a contemporaneous review reveals any non-compliance with Colorado's electrical and plumbing licensure or apprenticeship requirements, the inspector who performed the review shall promptly notify his or her immediate supervisor. Inspectors may file a complaint with the State electrical and plumbing boards for any violation of C.R.S. Title 12, Article 23 (Electricians) or C.R.S. Title 12, Article 58 (Plumbers).