The Fond du Lac Fire Chief says he’s pleased to hear the state Department of Safety and Professional Services will resume enforcing a code provision that requires fire sprinkler systems in certain multi-family dwellings. In 2017, then Republican Attorney General Brad Schimel issued a legal opinion that state regulators can’t enforce a rule requiring sprinklers in apartment buildings with more than four units. Last year Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul revisted the issue and determined that provision is enforceable. Fond du Lac Fire Chief Pete O’Leary says the rule is one of the best ways to save lives in the event of a fire. O’Leary questions the motive behind the home builder industry’s opposition to more restrictions on new construction when they cite the added cost.
