2711 Locust Street
Sterling, Illinois 61081
Phone: 815-626-7744
Toll Free: 866-626-7744
Fax: 815-626-3628
IL Roofing License #104.020150
On August 1, 2025, Illinois Governor JB Pritzker signed Senate Bill 1742 into law as Public Act 104-0121, creating the Rooftop Safety for First Responders Act. The law took effect on January 1, 2026, and creates enforceable compliance obligations for building owners, property managers, contractors, and municipalities across Illinois.
Known informally as the Drew Price Act, the legislation is named for a Chicago firefighter who fell through an unguarded light shaft while
battling a rooftop fire. It directly addresses the physical hazards that make rooftop operations deadly and requires building owners and municipalities to fix them. This guide explains what the Act requires, who it applies to, and how Kee Safety can help you comply.
Introduced by State Senator Mike Porfirio (D-Lyons Township) and passed 93–12 in the House and 51–4 in the Senate, the Act establishes mandatory safety requirements for low-sloped roofs on Illinois buildings. When firefighters access a roof during an emergency, they may not be able to see where they are walking. Whether that is an unguarded edge, open shaft, or fragile skylight can that cause a fatal fall with no warning. The Act requires protective infrastructure on the buildings most likely to present these risks.
• August 1, 2025: Signed into law by Governor Pritzker as Public Act 104-0121
• January 1, 2026: Law takes effect—new construction and renovation projects must comply
• January 1, 2027: Deadline for municipalities to complete their first building survey
• Every 2 years (ongoing): Municipalities must repeat their building surveys
The Act creates distinct obligations for two groups: building owners and operators, who must install physical safety features, and municipalities, who must survey buildings and share data with first responders.
• Building Owners and Operators
If you own or manage a building with a low-sloped roof, defined as any roof with a pitch of less than 17% (roughly a 2-in-12 slope) you are subject to the Act’s physical requirements. This covers the vast majority of commercial, industrial, retail, warehouse, and flatroofed multi-family residential buildings.•
Compliance applies to:
• New construction
All qualifying buildings constructed after January 1, 2026, must incorporate compliant fall protection from the outset.
• Significant renovations
Major structural or roofing work on a qualifying building triggers compliance requirements for the affected roof sections.
• Existing buildings
Structures already in service with low-sloped roofs must be evaluated and upgraded where necessary.
• Municipalities
Every municipality in Illinois must conduct and maintain a survey of buildings within its jurisdiction that have qualifying low-sloped roofs, and share the results with local police and fire departments. In counties with more than one million residents, including Cook County, survey data must also be integrated into computer-aided dispatch (CAD) systems.
The Act’s core mandate: low-sloped roofs adjoining enclosed spaces, including light shafts, courts, or similar interior openings, must have one of the following installed along those edges:
• Parapet wall. A protective wall extending above the roofline, creating a physical barrier at the roof edge or shaft perimeter.
• Extended masonry. A continuation of masonry construction above the roof plane, integrated structurally into the building.
• Guard or guardrail. A manufactured or site-built safety railing meeting applicable load and height standards.
Skylights and Rooftop Openings
The Act also sets requirements for skylights and other openings in the plane of a low-sloped roof—among the most common causes of fatal firefighter falls, as a responder in smoke-filled conditions can step onto what appears to be a solid surface and fall through.
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For new construction and significant renovations, compliance is required from day one. For existing buildings, owners must assess their skylights and openings and retrofit or guard any that do not meet the standard.
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A step-by-step plan for building owners and municipalities:
• Determine if the Act applies. Identify buildings you own or manage with a low-sloped roof (pitch less than 17%). If so, you are subject to the physical requirements.
• Conduct a rooftop hazard assessment. Identify unguarded edges, skylights, access hatches, and other openings. A visit from Kee Safety’s trained fall protection specialists is a good starting point.
• Install compliant protection. Select the appropriate solution for each hazard, parapet extension, masonry, guardrail, skylight screen, or
skylight railing.
• Document everything. Retain your hazard assessment, installation records, contractor certifications, and engineering documentation for compliance verification and inspections.
• Cooperate with municipal surveys. Provide accurate rooftop information when your municipality conducts its survey.
Kee Safety provides engineered guardrail systems, skylight screens, and edge protection solutions for commercial and industrial rooftops across North America. Here is how our products and services address the Act’s specific requirements.
Rooftop Edge Protection and Guardrails
For most existing buildings, a guardrail system is the most practical retrofit solution. Kee Safety’s Kee Guard freestanding rooftop guardrail is a non-penetrating system that installs without structural modification to the roof membrane.
Skylight Fall Protection
Kee Cover skylight screens provide a rigid barrier over the opening, preventing fall-through while maintaining light transmission. Where a guardrail perimeter is preferred, the Kee Dome skylight railing surrounds the opening with a protective barrier. Both meet fall protection load requirements.
Hazard Assessment Surveys
Not sure whether your building is subject to the Act, or which features need attention? Kee Safety can put trained fall protection specialists on your roof to identify gaps and recommend solutions, a practical first step before committing to a retrofit.
Design and Installation Support
From single-building retrofits to large portfolios, Kee Safety’s design and installation team can manage projects end to end, with full documentation for your compliance records.
Proven expertise: Decades of experience designing and installing rooftop fall protection on commercial, industrial, and institutional buildings across North America.
Complete product range: From freestanding guardrails to skylight screens to permanent edge protection—everything needed to address the Act’s requirements in one place.
Non-penetrating options: Most of our systems install without roof penetration, protecting your roofing membrane while achieving full compliance.
Engineering support: Our team provides engineering documentation to support building permit applications and compliance records.
Regulatory alignment: Our systems are designed to meet or exceed OSHA, IBC, and applicable state and local safety standards.
Working with Sterling Commercial Roofing (SCR) and Kee Safety combines SCR’s established regional roofing contractor leadership and stellar reputation for service with Kee Safety’s specialized rooftop safety expertise and product portfolio for a compliance solution that’s second to none in the Midwest.
