Work done in the electrical industry in BC is regulated, meaning workers need special education and training to do electrical work, and to prove that they have the required skills and training they must be certified by the appropriate regulatory authority. In BC this regulatory authority is Technical Safety BC (TSBC). They oversee electrical equipment and systems across BC in accordance with the Electrical Safety Regulation, which is authorized by the Safety Standards Act.

The Safety Standards Act broadly encompasses all regulated disciplines within the province (gas, electrical, refrigeration, septic, elevators, etc.) insofar as how they are to deal with administration, licensing, compliance, enforcement, offences, and penalties among other things. Each of the regulated disciplines will have their own set of rules, called a regulation, which drills down into the “nitty-gritty” or “thou shalt” aspects of work. The Electrical regulation, as well as the regulations governing the other disciplines of regulated work, are written in “legalspeak” and can often be quite challenging to comprehend. We will try to distill the “need to know” from the regulation, which consists of the following sections:

• Definitions and applicability to utilities, residential electricity consumption, and the Safety Standards General Regulation
• Part 1 — General Qualification and Licensing Provisions
  • Division 1 — Individuals Who May Perform Regulated Electrical Work
  • Division 2 — Certificates of Qualification for Field Safety Representatives
• Part 2 — Permits, Inspections and Regulated Products
  • Division 1 — Permits
  • Division 2 — Regulated Product Standards and Certification
  • Division 3 — Combustible Wood Dust Hazards
• Schedule

The following is a summary of some, but not all, of the key points found within the 4 bulleted sections listed above.

It is advisable to print and refer to the Electrical Regulation in its entirety, to help fill in the gaps in this learning module.

Definitions, etc.

These are meant to clarify terms that may have some ambiguity involved.

The “BC Electrical Code” is the “Canadian Electrical Code, Part 1” as applies to residential and commercial buildings. The province of British Columbia doesn’t produce its own electrical code.

Permits and allowances for work may vary depending on the category of the structure, so there is a definition for a “fully detached dwelling”. This definition augments the one for “homeowner”, in that, like a homeowner’s gas permit, a homeowner’s electrical permit can only be issued for a fully detached dwelling.

A regulatory authority is usually TSBC, but in certain areas of the province it is a city or municipality that has an agreement with TSBC that they will issue permits and do inspections for certain classes of work. In short, it’s the entity you would go to for a permit for regulated work.

The definition for “rough wiring” implies that all work under that phase of inspection must be able to be seen (not inaccessible).

Note that nowhere in the definitions for electrical, nor in any of the other trades’ descriptions as well, is there any reference to a “ticket”. This is an old slang term that has roots somewhere long ago. Today’s tradespeople obtain a “license” or a “certificate of qualification” (C of Q), not a ticket. As such, a SkilledTradesBC certificate is the newest term for a journeyperson’s certificate of qualification.

A utility is the owner or operator of a facility that generates, transmits, or distributes electricity for sale. The major electricity utility in British Columbia is FortisBC.

Part 1 — General Qualification and Licensing Provisions

Division 1: Individuals Who May Perform Regulated Electrical Work

Section 4(1) lists the 7 individuals who are permitted to do regulated electrical work. The main ones are:

• Electrical journeypersons and apprentices, as described in 4(1)(a) and (c)
• Homeowners of fully detached dwellings, as described in 4(1)(d), and
• Gasfitters and refrigeration mechanics, as described in 4(1)(f) and 4(2)(c)

The others listed must satisfy various levels of administration and are therefore limited in their scope.

Division 2: Certificates of Qualification for Field Safety Representatives

An Electrical Field Safety Representative (FSR) is a person who is certified to make declarations that the work described in an electrical installation or operating permit complies with the Safety Standards Act and Electrical Safety Regulation. A declaration of completeness by an FSR usually, but not totally, circumvents the need for an inspection by the authority having jurisdiction (TSBC) by declaring that the installation meets all applicable codes and standards, so in effect the FSR is both a worker and an inspector. Presently, none of the other regulated trades in BC employ FSRs although the gas industry has been contemplating adoption of the FSR requirements for many years. There are several classes of Electrical FSR certification available within certain regulated disciplines (e.g., refrigeration) as well as the ability of individuals such as applied technologists and professional engineers to gain FSR certification. These are all listed in Part 2, Division 2, Sections 9 and 10.

Part 2: Permits, Inspections and Regulated Products

Division 1: Permits

Overall, utilities are exempt from the requirements for permits due to their operations being overseen by engineers and other qualified persons on staff. There are two basic types of permits, which are:

• Installation, and
• Operating

Installation permit

An installation permit is required for all regulated electrical work with exceptions listed in section 18 of the Regulation. As long as replacing with similar equipment that doesn’t have a maximum rating more than 150 V to ground, the exceptions are:

• Switches and receptacles
• Ballasts
• Cord attachment plugs
• Fan speed controllers
• Thermostats
• Overcurrent devices such as fuses, and
• Electrical testing

Lamps of up to 347 V to ground and fuses of up to 750 V may also be replaced without a permit if replaced with one of a similar type or rating.

Section 17 allows a homeowner to perform regulated electrical work, under a permit, in their fully detached single-family dwelling. Current and voltage in the dwelling cannot exceed 200 amps and 150 V to ground, electricity from the dwelling cannot supply any separately-owned or occupied property, and the work must be inspected by a safety officer after each phase is completed, before it is concealed and before it is energized. However, an inspection may not be required, and the work may be energized so long as the homeowner of a fully detached single-family dwelling works under the supervision of a licensed electrical contractor who has obtained a permit for the work, in which case the contractor assumes responsibility for the work. Otherwise, a homeowner permit is valid for 180 days and must be inspected before that time lapses.

Operating permit

An operating permit is obtained where electrical maintenance and equipment replacement is performed on buildings or premises that are large and commercial in nature. The application for the operating permit must include the name, class, and certificate of qualification number of the field safety representative who will perform or supervise the regulated work under the permit. Installation permits are not required for replacement of existing equipment with equipment intended to perform the same function. Building additions, however, would require obtaining an installation permit.

Inspections

A permit holder must request an inspection after every phase of the regulated work, however, if the permit holder is an FSR, the inspection authority has the right to waive the inspection, in which case they will ask for a declaration as previously discussed. If not waived, the work may not be covered or energized before inspection, and unless the inspection is for the final phase of the work, the permit holder cannot proceed to the next phase of work.

Division 2: Regulated Product Standards and Certification

Section 20 of Division 2 states that the Canadian Electrical Code, Part I is adopted by reference as the B.C. Electrical Code. The Code and the Regulation work together to provide guidance and establish safety standards for the installation, operation, and proper maintenance of electrical equipment, with a focus on the prevention of shock and fire hazards. To this end, both documents require that equipment bear prominently displayed markings and approvals to ensure they are correctly installed. There are some exemptions to this, and these are usually equipment that falls under the categories found in Section 16 of the Code. Equipment in that section may not need approvals so long as they are connected to the output of an approved Class 2 power supply that is certified to the appropriate standard(s). The output of this power supply may not exceed 100 VA. Electrical equipment that has not been approved may be displayed for not more than 14 days if the regulatory authority gives written permission to do so or be used by a utility in its capacity as a utility if a professional engineer has certified that the use of the equipment is safe.

Division 3: Combustible Wood Dust Hazards

The processing of some wood products creates an explosive atmosphere, called a combustible dust hazard (CDH). The regulation requires that wood processing facilities employ a professional to assess the possible presence of CDH locations and prepare a written dust management plan that complies with Section 18 of the Code for any CDH locations found. It also lays out the duties of the facility owner in continuously monitoring and ensuring compliance with the CDH plan and WorkSafe BC.

Schedule

This section adopts the CEC with amended definitions for “Electrical Contractor”, “National Building Code of Canada” and “National Fire Code of Canada”, as found in Section 0 of the CEC, to reflect the intended definitions in the Electrical Regulation.

Now complete Self-Test 11 and check your answers.

Self-Test 11