Yakima County, WA Building Safety: Elevator Maintenance (2026)
Key Facts
- Standard
- ASME A17.1 elevator/escalator maintenance and testing
- Inspection certificate
- Current certificate must be posted or on file
- Multi-elevator buildings
- At least one must run while occupied
- Single-elevator exception
- May go offline for testing or servicing
- Enforcer
- Yakima County Public Services code enforcement division
Summary
Buildings with elevators in unincorporated Yakima County must keep them running to ASME A17.1 standards under the county's Property Maintenance Code, with the current inspection certificate posted where the public can see it. Where a building has more than one passenger elevator, at least one must stay in service at all times the building is occupied.
706.1 General. Elevators, dumbwaiters and escalators shall be maintained in compliance with ASME A17.1. The most current certification of inspection shall be on display at all times within the elevator or attached to the escalator or dumbwaiter, be available for public inspection in the office of the building operator, or be posted in a publically conspicuous location approved by the building official. The inspection and tests shall be performed at not less than the periodical intervals listed in ASME A17.1, Appendix N, except where otherwise specified by the authority having jurisdiction. 706.2 Elevators. In buildings equipped with passenger elevators, not less than one elevator shall be maintained in operation at all times when the building is occupied. Exception: Buildings equipped with only one elevator shall be permitted to have the elevator temporarily out of service for testing or servicing.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: rev 4871853; v6 updated 2026-04-21; through 04-21-2026).
Full Breakdown
1, the national safety code for elevators and escalators. The most current certification of inspection has to be on display within the elevator itself, attached to the escalator or dumbwaiter, kept available for public inspection in the building operator's office, or posted somewhere publicly conspicuous that the building official approves. 1, Appendix N, unless the authority having jurisdiction specifies something else. 2 adds an operational floor for buildings with passenger elevators: at least one elevator must stay in service at all times the building is occupied.
The only exception covers buildings with just a single elevator, which is allowed to go temporarily out of service for testing or servicing. 2 folds a defective elevator into the code's definition of unsafe equipment, dangerous to the life, health, property or safety of the public or occupants, which can trigger the unsafe-equipment notice, hearing and placarding process in Section 108. 030.
Violations & Fines
An elevator kept in service without a current ASME A17.1 inspection certificate, or a building where every elevator is out of service without a testing or servicing exception, is a code violation the code official can address with a notice of violation under Section 106.2. If the defect makes the equipment unsafe under Section 108.1.2, the county can placard it and order it out of service until repaired, and uncorrected violations run as a misdemeanor citation or civil infraction under YCC Title 21.
Frequently Asked Questions
How often does a building elevator in unincorporated Yakima County need to be inspected?
Can a building with two elevators take both out of service at once?
What happens if an elevator becomes unsafe?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Yakima County
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