Links & FAQs

Idaho Code 39-8004 defines a serious safety hazard as a condition that presents an unreasonable health risk or risk of injury to occupants of a building. That same code section defines an imminent safety hazard as a condition that presents an unreasonable risk of death or serious bodily injury to occupants of a building.

The process of identifying whether a hazard qualifies as a serious and/or imminent safety hazard begins with notifying the Division of Building Safety of the potential hazard. The Division of Building Safety will then review the situation and, if necessary, contract with a licensed professional to independently evaluate the condition. Once the condition has been evaluated, a report is given to the Division of Building Safety classifying the severity of the problem. The Division of Building Safety will then work with the local school board and superintendent to remedy the problem.

Idaho Code 33-1019 specifically states that serious or imminent safety hazards on the property must be identified pursuant to chapter 80, title 39, Idaho Code. This section of Idaho Code states that the administrator of the Division of Building Safety will be responsible for identifying such hazards.

Each school district is responsible for determining the square footage of its student-occupied buildings. The square footage of all school buildings that are owned or leased through a lease purchase agreement and are regularly occupied by students must be included. If any portion of a building is occupied by students, the square footage for the entire building must be included.

The Department of Education will be collecting updated square footage information from each school district on an annual basis.

Maintenance is described as the activities concerned with the physical maintenance of buildings, i.e. the annual repairs, modifications, and improvements necessary to provide safe facilities and equipment for school programs. The National Center for Educational Statistics further defines maintenance as those activities associated with keeping buildings at an acceptable level of efficiency through repairs and preventive maintenance. Further testing could be done to determine what the activity is accomplishing. If it is satisfying a daily need, it is custodial. If it is an activity that is performed on a seldom or infrequent basis, it is preventive maintenance.

Annual building safety inspections are governed by the Idaho General Safety & Health Standards.

Call your regional safety inspector.