MCA Chapter 23

in effect

Miss. Code Ann. § 45-23-1 Title.

This chapter shall be cited as the “Mississippi Boiler and Pressure Vessel Safety Law of 1974.”

Miss. Code Ann. § 45-23-3 Application.

This chapter, except as otherwise herein provided, shall apply to all boilers and pressure vessels operating or intended for operation in the State of Mississippi or its territories.

Miss. Code Ann. § 45-23-5 Definitions.

The words, terms and phrases when used in this chapter shall have the meanings ascribed to them herein unless the context requires otherwise: “Boiler” shall mean a closed vessel in which water is heated, steam or high temperature liquid is generated, steam is superheated, or in which any combination of these functions is accomplished, under pressure or vacuum, for use externally to itself by the direct application of energy from the combustion of fuels, or from other high temperature fluids, or from electricity or nuclear energy. The term “boiler” shall include fired units for heating or vaporizing liquids other than water where these units are separate from processing systems and are complete within themselves. “Power boiler” shall mean a boiler in which steam or other vapor is generated at a pressure of more than fifteen (15) pounds per square inch gauge (hereinafter referred to as psig). “High pressure, high temperature water boiler” shall mean a water boiler operating at pressures exceeding one hundred sixty (160) psig, or temperatures exceeding two hundred fifty (250) degrees Fahrenheit. “Heating boiler” shall mean a steam or vapor boiler operating at pressures not exceeding fifteen (15) psig, or a hot water boiler operating at pressures not exceeding one hundred sixty (160) psig, or temperatures not exceeding two hundred fifty (250) degrees Fahrenheit. “Pressure vessel” shall mean a vessel in which the pressure is obtained from an external source or by the application of heat from an indirect source or from a direct source other than those vessels defined in paragraph (1) of this section. “Certificate inspection” shall mean an inspection, the report of which is used by the chief inspector to decide whether or not a certificate as provided by Sections 45-23-41 through 45-23-49 may be issued. This certificate inspection shall be an internal inspection when construction permits; otherwise it shall be as complete an inspection as possible.

Miss. Code Ann. § 45-23-7 Repealed.

Repealed by Laws of 2017, ch. 402, § 9, effective July 1, 2017. § 45-23-7 . [Laws, 1974, ch. 500, § 3; Laws, 1983, ch. 522, § 43, eff from and after July 1, 1983.] Editor’s Notes — Former § 45-23-7 established a Technical Advisory Committee of Boiler and Pressure Vessel Safety.

Miss. Code Ann. § 45-23-9 Rules and regulations.

The State Board of Health (hereinafter board) shall adopt definitions, rules and regulations for the safe construction, installation, inspection, care and good practice in the operation, maintenance and repair of boilers and pressure vessels. The definitions, rules and regulations so formulated for new construction shall be based upon and at all times follow the generally accepted nationwide engineering standards, formulae and practices established and pertaining to boiler and pressure vessel construction and safety, and the board shall at its first meeting adopt an existing published codification thereof known as the Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (hereinafter ASME), with the amendments, code cases and interpretations thereto made and approved by ASME, and may likewise adopt the amendments and interpretations subsequently made and published by the same authority; and when so adopted, the same shall be deemed incorporated into and to constitute a part of the whole of the definitions, rules and regulations of the committee. Amendments, code cases and interpretations to the code so adopted shall be effective immediately upon being promulgated, to the end that the definitions, rules and regulations shall at all times follow the generally accepted nationwide engineering standards. The board shall adopt rules and regulations for the inspection, care and good practice in operation, maintenance and repair of boilers and pressure vessels which were in use in this state prior to the date upon which the first rules and regulations under this chapter pertaining to existing installations become effective, or during the twelve-month period immediately thereafter. The rules and regulations so formulated and recommended shall be based upon and at all times follow the generally accepted nationwide engineering standards. The rules and regulations and any subsequent amendments thereto adopted by the board shall, immediately following a hearing upon not less than thirty (30) day’s notice as hereinafter provided, be approved and published and when so promulgated shall have the force and effect of law, except that the rules applying to the construction of new boilers and pressure vessels shall not become mandatory until twelve (12) months after their promulgation by the board. Subsequent amendments to the rules and regulations adopted by the board shall be permissive immediately and shall become mandatory twelve (12) months after their promulgation. Notice of the hearing shall give the time and place of the hearing and shall state the matters to be considered. Such notice shall be given to all persons directly affected by such hearing. In the event all persons directly affected are unknown, notice shall be perfected by publication in a newspaper of general circulation in the Northern, Central and Southern Supreme Court Districts of this state at least thirty (30) days prior to such hearing.

Miss. Code Ann. § 45-23-11 Prohibition against nonconforming installation or operation; special permit.

No boiler or pressure vessel which does not conform to the rules and regulations of the board governing new construction and installation shall be installed and operated in this state after twelve (12) months from the date upon which the first rules and regulations under this chapter pertaining to new construction and installation shall have become effective, unless the boiler or pressure vessel is of special design or construction and is not inconsistent with the spirit and safety objectives of such rules and regulations, in which case a special installation and operating permit may, at its discretion, be granted by the board.

Miss. Code Ann. § 45-23-13 Maximum allowable pressure.

The maximum allowable pressure of a boiler carrying the ASME code symbol or of a pressure vessel carrying the ASME or API-ASME code symbol shall be determined by the applicable sections of the code under which it was constructed and stamped. The maximum allowable pressure of a boiler or pressure vessel which does not carry the ASME or the API-ASME code symbol shall be computed in accordance with generally accepted nationwide engineering standards as required by the board. This chapter shall not be construed as in any way preventing the use, sale or reinstallation of a boiler or pressure vessel referred to in subsections (1) and (2), provided it has been made to conform to the rules and regulations of the board governing existing installations and provided, further, it has been found upon inspection to be in a safe condition and that an inspection certificate can be issued.

Miss. Code Ann. § 45-23-15 Exemptions.

This chapter shall not apply to the following boilers and pressure vessels: Boilers and pressure vessels located on United States Government property and/or under federal government control and pipelines, including compressors and related facilities, which are subject to inspection by any agency of the federal government or other agency of the State of Mississippi; Pressure vessels used for transportation and storage of compressed gases when constructed in compliance with specifications of the U.S. Department of Transportation and when charged with gas, marked, maintained and when periodically requalified for use, as required by appropriate regulations of the U.S. Department of Transportation; Air tanks located on vehicles operating under the rules of other state authorities and used for carrying passengers or freight; Air tanks installed on the right-of-way of railroads and used directly in the operation of trains; Pressure vessels that do not exceed (i) five (5) cubic feet in volume and two hundred fifty (250) psig pressure, or (ii) one and one-half (1-1/2) cubic feet in volume and six hundred (600) psig pressure, or (iii) an inside diameter of six (6) inches or less with no limitation on pressure; Pressure vessels operating at a working pressure not exceeding fifteen (15) psig; Vessels with a nominal water-containing capacity of one hundred twenty (120) gallons or less for containing water under pressure, including those containing also air, the compression of which serves only as a cushion; Boiler and pressure vessels constructed and operated under licenses and permits granted by the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission; Boilers and pressure vessels used in connection with the production, treating, processing, storage or transportation of oil or natural gas, when located in areas which are remote from places of human habitation or public congregation. The following boilers and pressure vessels shall be exempt from the requirements of Sections 45-23-31 through 45-23-55: Heating boilers which are located in private residences or in apartment houses of less than six (6) family units; Pressure vessels containing only water under pressure for domestic supply purposes, including those containing also air, the compression of which serves only as a cushion or airlift pumping system when located in private residences or in apartment houses of less than six (6) family units, or those serving rural water systems; Pressure vessels which are covered under the Liquefied Compressed Gas Equipment Inspection Law of Mississippi, being Sections 75-57-1 through 75-57-63, Mississippi Code of 1972; Air receiving tanks and attached tanks used in connection with automobile filling stations that do not exceed fifteen (15) cubic feet in volume and two hundred fifty (250) psig pressure and that are used primarily to increase air pressure in automobile tires.

Miss. Code Ann. § 45-23-17 Chief inspector; qualifications.

The board shall employ a chief inspector who shall be a citizen of this state, or if no suitable person is available a citizen of another state, who shall have had at the time of such appointment not less than ten (10) years experience in the construction, installation, inspection, operation, maintenance or repair of high pressure boilers and pressure vessels as a mechanical engineer, steam operating engineer, boilermaker or boiler inspector, and who shall have passed the same kind of examination as that prescribed under Section 45-23-23, and who should be, whenever possible, a registered professional engineer in this state. Such appointment shall be made within sixty (60) days after passage of this chapter and at any time thereafter that the office of the chief inspector may become vacant. Such chief inspector may be removed for cause after due investigation by the board.

Miss. Code Ann. § 45-23-19 Chief inspector; duties and powers.

The chief inspector, if authorized by the board, is hereby charged, directed and empowered: to take action necessary for the enforcement of the laws of the State of Mississippi governing the use of boilers and pressure vessels to which this chapter applies and of the rules and regulations of the board; to keep a complete record of the type, dimensions, maximum allowable pressure, age, location, and all inspection reports of all boilers and pressure vessels to which this chapter applies; to publish and make available to anyone requesting them copies of the rules and regulations promulgated by the board; to issue, or to suspend or revoke for cause, inspection certificates as provided for in Sections 45-23-41 through 45-23-49; to cause the prosecution of all violators of the provisions of this chapter; to draw from the special fund created by Sections 45-23-53 through 45-23-55 any funds appropriated or authorized to be expended by the legislature for the purpose of implementing and administering this chapter. These expenditures may include but are not necessarily limited to the necessary traveling expenses of the chief inspector and his deputies and the expense incident to the maintenance of the chief inspector’s office; to maintain a list of qualified inspectors or other persons eligible to make inspections within this state and its territories.

Miss. Code Ann. § 45-23-21 Deputy inspectors; inspection service; special inspectors.

The board: may employ deputy inspectors who shall be responsible to the chief inspector and who shall have had at the time of appointment not less than five (5) years experience in the construction, installation, inspection, operation, maintenance or repair of high pressure boilers and pressure vessels as a mechanical engineer, steam operating engineer, boilermaker or boiler inspector, and who shall have passed the examination provided for in Section 45-23-23. shall, upon the request of any company licensed to insure and insuring in this state boilers and pressure vessels or, upon the request of any company operating boilers and/or pressure vessels in this state for which the owner or user maintains a regularly established inspection service which is under the supervision of one or more engineers whose qualifications are satisfactory to the board and causes said pressure vessels to be regularly inspected and rated by such inspection service in accordance with applicable provisions of the rules and regulations adopted by the board pursuant to Section 45-23-9, issue to any inspectors of said company licenses as special inspectors, provided that each such inspector before receiving his license shall satisfactorily pass the examination provided for by Section 45-23-23; or in lieu of such examination the board may accept persons who hold a license or a certificate of competency as an inspector of boilers and pressure vessels for a state that has a standard of examination substantially equal to that of the State of Mississippi. A license as a special inspector shall be issued to a qualified employee of a company operating boilers and/or pressure vessels in this state only if, in addition to meeting the requirements stated herein, the person is employed full time by the company and is responsible for making inspections of pressure vessels used or to be used by such company and which are not for resale. Such special inspectors shall receive no salary from, nor shall any of their expenses be paid by, the state; and the continuance of a special inspector’s license shall be conditioned upon his continuing in the employ of the insurance company duly authorized as aforesaid or upon continuing in the employ of the company so operating pressure vessels in this state and upon his maintenance of the standards imposed by this chapter. Such special inspectors shall inspect all boilers and pressure vessels insured or all boilers and/or pressure vessels operated by their respective companies, and when so inspected the owners and users of such boilers and pressure vessels shall be exempt from payment to the state of inspection fees provided for in Section 43-23-53.

Miss. Code Ann. § 45-23-23 Examination for inspectors [Repealed effective July 1, 2020].

The examination for chief, deputy or special inspector shall be in writing and shall be by the merit system of the board under the rules of procedure during the examination. Application for examination shall be in writing on forms provided by the board and shall be accompanied by a fee of Twenty-five Dollars ($25.00). Any increase in the fee charged by the board under this subsection shall be in accordance with the provisions of Section 41-3-65. Such examination shall be confined to questions, the answers to which will aid in determining the fitness and competency of the applicant for the intended service. In case an applicant for an inspector’s license fails to pass the examination, he may appeal to the merit system of the board for another examination which shall be given by the board within ninety (90) days. The record of an applicant’s examination shall be accessible to the applicant and his employer.

Miss. Code Ann. § 45-23-25 Suspension or revocation of inspector’s license.

An inspector’s license may be suspended by the chief inspector, after due investigation and approval by the board, for the incompetence or untrustworthiness of the holder thereof or for willful falsification of any matter or statement contained in his application or in a report of any inspection made by him. Written notice of any such suspension shall be given by the chief inspector within not more than ten (10) days thereof to the inspector and his employer. A person whose license has been suspended shall be entitled to an appeal to the board, as provided in Section 45-23-57, and to be present in person or to be represented by counsel at the hearing of the appeal. If the board has reason to believe that a licensed inspector is no longer qualified to hold his license, the board shall, upon not less than ten (10) days’ written notice to the inspector and his employer, hold a hearing at which such inspector and his employer shall have an opportunity to be heard. If, as a result of such hearing, the board shall find that such inspector is no longer qualified to hold his license, the board shall instruct the chief inspector that such license shall be revoked and the chief inspector shall thereupon revoke such license forthwith. A person whose license has been suspended shall be entitled to apply, after ninety (90) days from the date of such suspension for reinstatement of such license.

Miss. Code Ann. § 45-23-27 Replacement of lost or destroyed license.

If a license is lost or destroyed, a new license shall be issued in its place without another examination.

Miss. Code Ann. § 45-23-29 Inspectors’ bonds.

The chief inspector shall furnish a bond in the sum of Five Thousand Dollars ($5,000.00), and each of the deputy inspectors employed and paid by the state shall furnish a bond in the sum of Two Thousand Dollars ($2,000.00), conditioned upon the faithful performance of their duties and upon a true account of monies handled by them respectively and the payment thereof to the proper recipient. The cost of said bonds shall be paid from funds appropriated by the legislature for administration of this chapter.

Miss. Code Ann. § 45-23-31 Access to premises.

Any duly authorized representative of the board shall have free access, during reasonable hours, to any premises in the state where a boiler or pressure vessel is being constructed for use in, or is being installed in, this state for the purpose of ascertaining whether such boiler or pressure vessel is being constructed and installed in accordance with the provisions of this chapter.

Miss. Code Ann. § 45-23-33 Inspection requirements.

On and after the effective date of the rules and regulations first promulgated by the board, each boiler and pressure vessel used or proposed to be used within this state, except boilers or pressure vessels exempt under Section 45-23-15, shall be thoroughly inspected as to their construction, installation and condition as follows: Power boilers and high pressure, high temperature water boilers shall receive a certificate inspection annually or as the board may require and shall also be externally inspected annually while under pressure if possible. Heating boilers shall receive a certificate inspection biennially. Pressure vessels subject to internal corrosion shall receive a certificate inspection biennially. Pressure vessels not subject to internal corrosion shall receive a certificate inspection at intervals set by the board, but internal inspection shall not be required of pressure vessels, the contents of which are known to be noncorrosive to the material of which the shell, heads or fittings are constructed, either from the chemical composition of the contents or from evidence that the contents are adequately treated with a corrosion inhibitor, or from evidence that the vessel parts are isolated from the contents with a corrosion resistant lining, provided that such vessels are constructed in accordance with the rules and regulations of the board, and provided further that evidence proving noncorrosiveness is approved by the board. Nuclear vessels within the scope of this chapter shall be inspected and reported in such form and with such appropriate information as the board shall designate. A grace period of two (2) months beyond the periods specified in paragraphs (a), (b), (c) and (d) may elapse between certificate inspections. The board may, in its discretion, permit longer periods between certificate inspections. Under the provisions of this chapter, the board shall provide for the safety of life, limb and property, and therefore has jurisdiction over the interpretation and application of the inspection requirements as provided for in the rules and regulations which they have promulgated. Inspection during construction and installation shall certify as to the minimum requirements for safety. Inspection requirements of operating equipment shall be in accordance with generally accepted practice and compatible with the actual service conditions, such as: (i) previous experience, based on records of inspection, performance and maintenance; (ii) location, with respect to personnel hazard; (iii) quality of inspection and operating personnel; (iv) provision for related safe operation controls; (v) interrelation with other operations outside the scope of this chapter. Based upon documentation of such actual service conditions by the owner or user of the operating equipment, the board may, in its discretion, permit variations in inspection requirements.

Miss. Code Ann. § 45-23-35 Who may make required inspections.

The inspections herein required shall be made by the chief inspector, by a deputy inspector, or by a special inspector provided for in this chapter.

Miss. Code Ann. § 45-23-37 Hydrostatic tests.

If the inspector can show due cause that a hydrostatic test is necessary it shall be made by the owner or user of the boiler or pressure vessel, at the owner’s or user’s expense.

Miss. Code Ann. § 45-23-39 Inspection during construction.

All boilers, other than cast iron sectional boilers, and pressure vessels to be installed in this state after the twelve (12) month period from the date upon which the rules and regulations of the board shall become effective, shall be inspected during construction as required by the applicable rules and regulations of the board by an inspector authorized to inspect boilers and pressure vessels in this state, or, if constructed outside of the state, by an inspector holding a license issued by an organization approved by the board.

Miss. Code Ann. § 45-23-41 Procedure in general by companies employing special inspectors; exemption [Repealed effective July 1, 2020].

Each company employing special inspectors, except a company operating boilers and/or pressure vessels covered by owner or user inspection service meeting the requirements of Section 45-23-21(b) shall, within thirty (30) days following each certificate inspection made by such inspectors, file a report of such inspection with the chief inspector upon appropriate forms as promulgated by the board. If such report shows that a boiler or pressure vessel is found to comply with the rules and regulations of the board, the owner or user thereof shall pay directly to the board the fee of Twenty Dollars ($20.00) for an annual certificate or Thirty Dollars ($30.00) for a biennial certificate, and the chief inspector or his duly authorized representative shall issue to such owner or user an inspection certificate bearing the date of inspection and specifying the maximum pressure under which the boiler or pressure vessel may be operated. Any increase in the fee charged by the board under this section shall be in accordance with the provisions of Section 41-3-65. Such inspection certificate shall be valid for not more than fourteen (14) months from its date in the case of power boilers and high pressure, high temperature water boilers, and for not more than twenty-six (26) months in the case of heating boilers and pressure vessels. In the case of those boilers and pressure vessels covered by Section 45-23-33(a), (b), (c) and (d) for which the board has established or extended the operating period between required inspections, pursuant to the provisions of Section 45-23-33(g) or (h), the certificate shall be valid for a period not more than two (2) months beyond the period set by the board. Certificates shall be posted under glass in the room containing the boiler or pressure vessel inspected. If the boiler or pressure vessel is not located within the building, the certificate shall be posted in a location convenient to the boiler or pressure vessel inspected, or in any place where it will be accessible to interested parties. Air tanks used to inflate automobile tires shall be exempt from the inspection requirements of this section.

Miss. Code Ann. § 45-23-43 Procedure by companies covered by owner or user inspection service meeting statutory requirements.

Each company operating boilers and/or pressure vessels covered by owner or user inspection service meeting the requirements of Section 45-23-21(b) shall maintain in its files an inspection record which shall list, by number and such abbreviated description as may be necessary for identification, each pressure vessel covered by this chapter, the date of the last inspection of each such unit, and for each pressure vessel the approximate date for the next inspection thereof arrived at by applying the appropriate rules therefor to all data available at the time such inspection record is compiled. Such inspection record shall be readily available for examination by the chief inspector or his authorized representative during business hours.

Miss. Code Ann. § 45-23-45 Statement by company covered by owner or user inspection service; filing fee [Repealed effective July 1, 2020].

Each such company shall, in addition, file annually with the board a statement, signed by the engineer having supervision over the inspections made during the period covered thereby, stating the number of vessels covered by this chapter inspected during the year and certifying that each such inspection was conducted pursuant to the inspection requirements provided for by this chapter. Such annual statement shall be accompanied by a filing fee in accordance with the following schedule: For statements covering not more than twenty-five (25) vessels – Three Dollars ($3.00) per vessel. For statements covering more than twenty-five (25) but less than one hundred one (101) vessels – Seventy-five Dollars ($75.00). For statements covering more than one hundred (100) but less than five hundred one (501) vessels – One Hundred Fifty Dollars ($150.00). For statements covering more than five hundred (500) vessels – Three Hundred Dollars ($300.00). Any increase in the fee charged by the board under this section shall be in accordance with the provisions of Section 41-3-65.

Miss. Code Ann. § 45-23-47 Invalidation of inspection certificate upon termination of insurance.

No inspection certificate issued for an insured boiler or pressure vessel based upon a report of a special inspector shall be valid after the boiler or pressure vessel for which it was issued shall cease to be insured by a company duly authorized by this state to provide such insurance.

Miss. Code Ann. § 45-23-49 Suspension of inspection certificate.

The board or its authorized representative may at any time suspend an inspection certificate when, upon a showing of due cause, the boiler or pressure vessel for which it was issued cannot be operated without menace to the public safety, or when the boiler or pressure vessel is found not to comply with the rules and regulations herein provided. Each suspension of an inspection certificate shall continue in effect until such boiler or pressure vessel shall have been made to conform to the rules and regulations of the board, and until said inspection certificate shall have been reinstated.

Miss. Code Ann. § 45-23-51 Violations; penalties.

After twelve (12) months following the date of issuance of the rules and regulations by the board, it shall be unlawful for any person, firm, partnership or corporation to operate in this state or its territories a boiler or pressure vessel, except a boiler and/or pressure vessel covered by owner or user inspection service as provided for in Sections 45-23-43 and 45-23-45, without a valid inspection certificate. The operation of a boiler or pressure vessel without such inspection certificate, or at a pressure exceeding that specified in such inspection certificate, shall constitute a misdemeanor on the part of the owner, user or operator thereof and shall be punishable by a fine not exceeding Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00) or imprisonment not to exceed six (6) months, or both. Each day of such unlawful operation shall be deemed a separate offense.

Miss. Code Ann. § 45-23-53 Fees where inspection made by chief inspector or his deputy [Repealed effective July 1, 2020].

The owner or user of a boiler or pressure vessel required by this chapter to be inspected by the chief inspector, of his deputy inspector, shall pay directly to the board, upon completion of inspection, fees as specified by the board in the rules and regulations. Fee schedules set by the board shall be reasonable and practical, but shall be set at a level which, in conjunction with the fees collected under Sections 45-23-41 through 45-23-45, will make this activity reasonably self-supporting. Any increase in the fees set by the board under this paragraph shall be in accordance with the provisions of Section 41-3-65. A group of pressure vessels, such as the rolls of a paper machine or dryer operating as a single machine or unit, shall be considered as one (1) pressure vessel. Not more than one (1) fee shall be charged or collected for any and all inspections of any pressure vessel in any required inspection period. When it is necessary to make a special trip to witness the application of a hydrostatic test, an additional fee based on the scale of fees applicable to a certificate inspection of the boiler or pressure vessel shall be charged.

Miss. Code Ann. § 45-23-55 Boiler and pressure vessel safety fund.

There is hereby created a special fund in the state treasury to be known as the boiler and pressure vessel safety fund into which shall be deposited all funds appropriated by the legislature for the implementation of this chapter, and funds from fees, fines and any other source that shall be used for the implementation and administration of this chapter by the Mississippi State Board of Health.

Miss. Code Ann. § 45-23-57 Appeal to board.

Any person aggrieved by an order or an act of the board or the chief inspector under this chapter may, within fifteen (15) days’ notice thereof, appeal from such order or act to the board which shall, within thirty (30) days thereafter, issue an appropriate order either approving or disapproving said order or act. A copy of such order by the board shall be given to all interested parties.

Miss. Code Ann. § 45-23-59 Review of board action.

Within thirty (30) days after any order or act of the board, any person aggrieved thereby may file a petition in the circuit court of the county of the aggrieved for a review thereof. The court shall summarily hear the petition and may make any appropriate order.

Miss. Code Ann. § 45-23-61 Legislative power of city, town, or other governmental subdivision.

No city, town or other governmental subdivision shall have the power to make any laws, ordinances or resolutions providing for the construction, installation, inspection, operation, maintenance or repair of boilers and pressure vessels within the limits of such city, town or governmental subdivision, and any such laws, ordinances or resolutions heretofore made or passed shall be and are hereby declared void and of no effect.