Six years ago, the State Fire Marshal’s office issued citations for fire code violations to two group homes for developmentally impaired adults operated under the auspices of a Johnson County social service agency. The Fire Marshal considered the homes to be care facilities requiring protective devices they didn’t have. Johnson County pushed back. Since then, the dispute—pitting the Johnson County Board of Commissioners against State Fire Marshal Doug Jorgensen has evolved into a legal tussle having little to do with the particular citations and a great deal to do with how those group homes and about two dozen others like them in Johnson County may be regulated. Johnson County has argued the group homes should not be treated as care facilities regulated under the Kansas Fire Safety and Prevention Act (state fire code), K.S.A. 31-132 et seq., so the safety features the Fire Marshal found lacking would be unnecessary. In addition, Johnson County requested what it has characterized as a reasonable accommodation under the federal Fair Housing Act (FHA), 42 U.S.C. § 3601 et seq., that would excuse compliance with the state fire code. The Fire Marshal denied the request. The district court upheld the Fire Marshal’s position, as do we.
Source: Supreme Court of Kansas
