§ 16-8. Duties of Gas Appliance Board.

(a) In general.

In order to safeguard and protect the health and safety of the people of Baltimore City, the Board is hereby authorized and empowered:

(1) subject to Title 4 {"Administrative Procedure Act – Regulations"} of the City General Provisions Article, to make, adopt and promulgate rules, regulations, and specifications governing the design, construction, and performance of all appliances, accessories, or equipment and/or samples or models thereof for use with, by, or for the combustion of gas as distributed and/or sold in the City of Baltimore, provided that all rules, regulations, and specifications so made, adopted, and promulgated shall be pursuant to but not in conflict with the provisions of this subtitle;

(2) to develop and administer examinations, testing applicants' knowledge of the trade and work of gas fitting; and

(3) to require, in cases of specific types of gas appliances where the Board deems that public safety warrants it, that persons, including those already registered as Master Gas Fitters and Gas Fitters of Baltimore City, who engage in the installation of such appliances, shall qualify to the Board by additional examinations as having the necessary skill and facilities to perform such work. There shall be no charge for such additional examination.

(b) Considerations; testing.

(1) The Board in making and adopting said rules, regulations, and specifications may consider the rules regulations, and specifications established by the American National Standard Institute, or any other rules, regulations, and specifications relating to said subject.

(2) Whenever the Board shall determine that it is necessary and/or desirable to test in a laboratory or testing agency any appliance, accessory, or equipment offered for registration, in order to determine whether or not the same complies with the rules, regulations, or specifications prescribed by the Board under the authority of this subtitle, the Commissioner of Housing and Community Development of Baltimore City is hereby authorized to direct said tests to be made by the laboratories of either the United States Bureau of Standards, the Johns Hopkins University, the American Gas Association, or any other laboratory or testing agency approved by the Commissioner; and the Commissioner is hereby further authorized and directed to require the costs of such tests to be paid in advance by the applicant of registration.