All electrical wiring, materials, equipment and the methods of installation thereof, in every county or metropolitan area subject to the provisions of this act, shall be installed, furnished and used in such manner as to protect the safety of all persons and property affected thereby. Compliance with the electrical code of any city having a population of one hundred eighty thousand (180,000), or more, according to the last Federal Decennial Census or any future Federal Decennial Census, which city is located in the county of inspection, shall be deemed to be prima facie evidence of compliance with this act.

If the electrical code of any such city, as defined in this section, or any electrical code which may be adopted by the board of county commissioners by virtue of the authority hereinafter granted, contains no specific standards as to the manner of electrical wiring, materials, equipment and the methods of installation thereof, compliance with the statutes of this state pertaining to the installation of electrical materials and equipment and conformity with the regulations set forth in then current National Electrical Code which is the standard of the National Board of Fire Underwriters for electrical wiring and apparatus, as recommended by the National Fire Protection Association and approved by the American Standards Association, shall be prima facie evidence of conformity with approved standards of safety to persons and property and of compliance with this act.

In the event that a board of county commissioners of any county or the governing body of any city affected by this act fails to enter into an agreement authorized under this act with a city or county, as the case may be, or if such an agreement is terminated, the governing body of any city or the board of county commissioners of such county is hereby granted the authority to adopt an electrical code for the city or county, as the case may be. Such code shall not be adopted by the board of county commissioners until after it has held a public hearing at which all interested persons have been permitted to appear to express their views as to what provisions the code should contain. Public notice of such hearing must be given by the board of county commissioners by publication in its proceedings at least thirty (30) days prior to the date of said hearing. From and after the effective date of any county electrical code adopted by the board of county commissioners under the authority created herein, all electrical installations within the unincorporated area of the county must be made to conform therewith. Such code shall afford safety to persons and property from hazardous electrical installations, but shall not unduly restrict owners in the improvement of their property.

Added by Laws 1965, c. 406, § 11, emerg. eff. July 5, 1965.