Law to Ban Sale of Smoke Alarms with Removable Batteries

Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed a bill Dec. 28 that will help prevent future home fire deaths.

The law, also known as the smoke alarm bill, will ban the sale of smoke detectors with removable batteries and require detectors with non-removable, 10-year batteries to be sold.

The Firemen’s Association of the State of New York issued a statement thanking the governor.

“Today the governor took a big step towards protecting the lives of New Yorkers and the firefighters tasked with protecting them,” said Robert McConville, FASNY president. “We would like to thank Gov. Cuomo and the bill sponsors, Assemblyman Joseph Morelle and state Sen. John Flanagan, for their leadership on this critical piece of legislation, which was intended to do one thing: help save lives in New York State.

“We’ve seen time and again that working smoke alarms can be the difference between life and death. This law will no doubt go a long way towards ensuring New York is a safer place.”

According to FASNY, firefighters frequently encounter homes without smoke alarms or working smoke alarms. Many residents do not regularly rotate the batteries in their smoke alarms or will remove, according to FASNY.

Smoke alarms equipped with long-lasting, sealed-in batteries require virtually no maintenance once installed, eliminating the need for fresh batteries every six months, FASNY stated.