A Sultan couple will try again this year to push the state to be more aggressive in ensuring apartment owners put smoke alarms in their units and face consequences when they don’t.
Gerry and Bonnie Gibson are working with state lawmakers on a bill intended to boost the number of smoke detectors installed in rental dwellings and single family homes, possibly through use of incentives like a discount on insurance premiums. The legislation, still in the draft stage, also calls for fines of up to $5,000 if there is damage or deaths as a result of a fire in a rental unit without a smoke detector.
This will be the Gibsons’ third attempt at changing state law in this arena. They began their efforts after the death of their son, Greg “Gibby” Gibson, in a house fire in Shoreline on Jan. 8, 2016. That rental house did not have smoke alarms.