BILL NO. 43

(as introduced)

3rd Session, 61st General Assembly
Nova Scotia
60 Elizabeth II, 2011

Government Bill

Interior Designers Act
(amended)

The Honourable Ross Landry
Minister of Justice

First Reading: April 28, 2011

(Explanatory Note)

Second Reading: May 5, 2011

Third Reading: May 10, 2011 (LINK TO BILL AS PASSED)

This Bill narrows the scope of practice of interior designers to match limitations on the scope of practice of architects.

1 (1) Section 3 of Chapter 6 of the Acts of 2003, the Interior Designers Act, is amended by adding immediately after subsection (1) the following subsection:

(1A) In subsection (2), unless the context otherwise requires,

(a) "assembly occupancy" means the occupancy or the use of a building, or part thereof, by a gathering of persons for civic, political, travel, religious, social, educational, recreational or like purposes, or for the consumption of food or drink;

(b) "building area" means the greatest horizontal area of a building above grade within the outside surface of exterior walls or within the outside surface of exterior walls and the centre line of firewalls;

(c) "building height" in storeys, means the number of storeys contained between the roof and the floor of the first storey;

(d) "business and personal services occupancy" means the occupancy or use of a building, or part thereof, for the transaction of business or the rendering or receiving of professional or personal services;

(e) "high hazard industrial occupancy" means an industrial occupancy containing sufficient quantities of highly combustible and flammable or explosive materials that, because of their inherent characteristics, constitute a special fire hazard;

(f) "low hazard industrial occupancy" means an industrial occupancy in which the combustible content is not more than 50 kilograms per square metre or 1,200 megajoules per square metre of floor area;

(g) "medium hazard industrial occupancy" means an industrial occupancy in which the combustible content is more than 50 kilograms per square metre or 1,200 megajoules per square metre of floor area and not classified as high hazard industrial occupancy;

(h) "mercantile occupancy" means the occupancy or use of a building, or part thereof, for the displaying or selling of retail goods, wares or merchandise;

(i) "residential occupancy" means the occupancy or use of a building, or part thereof, by persons for whom sleeping accommodation is provided but who are not harboured or detained to receive medical care or treatment or are not involuntarily detained.

(e) the practice of interior design by persons other than members of the Association in the Registered Class or in the Non-resident Registered Class in connection with a building as constructed, enlarged or altered, and used for one or more of the following occupancies, unless a member of the Association in the Registered Class or in the Non-resident Registered Class is otherwise required by law or by the building authority having jurisdiction over the project:
(i) a one-dwelling or two-dwelling unit,

(ii) of three storeys or less in building height, having a building area not exceeding 450 square metres classified as

(A) residential occupancy,

(B) business and personal services occupancy,

(C) mercantile occupancy, or

(D) low and medium hazard industrial occupancy,

(iii) an assembly occupancy of not more than one storey in building height, having a building area of not more than 200 square metres, or

(iv) a high hazard industrial occupancy of not more than one storey in building height, having a building area of not more than 200 square metres;