New Berlin, WI Building Safety: Carbon Monoxide Detectors (2026)

New Berlin folds its carbon monoxide detector mandate into the short-term rental licensing process rather than setting a citywide detector rule for every dwelling. Under § 152-24(C)(2), once an application for a short-term rental license is filed, the property described in it must be inspected by both the City Building Inspector and the Fire Department before any license issues. The inspectors check compliance with applicable state, county and local rules, including, as the code specifically calls out, the terms of the fire code requiring a working smoke detector and carbon monoxide detector on each level of the building.

Each department files a written report with the City Clerk stating whether the property passed or listing the specific violations found. Any violation identified in that report has to be corrected by the applicant before the Clerk can issue the license, and the same inspection and correction cycle repeats at renewal under § 152-24(C)(3), which requires a fresh Fire Department and Building Inspector inspection with each renewal application, filed at least 45 days before the current license expires. If the property sits under an open Building Inspector compliance order at any point, the code deems any already-issued license automatically suspended until the order is resolved.

Because the requirement is written into the licensing chapter rather than the general building or fire code, it reaches short-term rental units specifically; New Berlin's code does not contain a separate, freestanding carbon monoxide detector mandate for owner-occupied homes or ordinary long-term rentals outside this licensing process.