Dallas Hosts ICC Final Action Hearings, Educational Tours

Revised hearings and tour dates; posted March 10, 2010.

Spring Hearings Will Debate Changes for Several 2012 Codes including Building, Fire, PMG; Features Learning Tours of LEED Gold Home, 1920s Power Station Converted to Residence

Building safety advocates will consider several hundred code changes during the International Code Council Final Action Hearings, May 15–23 in Dallas. The Group A Final ActionHearings will include all sections of the International Building, Fire, Plumbing, Mechanical, Fuel Gas, Wildland-Urban Interface and Existing Building codes, and the building, mechanical and plumbing sections of the International Residential Code.

The Dallas hearings also feature two educational tours on May 14 to learn about local architecture and code-related challenges. Attendees will see how architects and builders are bringing sustainable construction to Dallas and be eligible to earn CEUs. One tour visits a LEED Gold home with innovative building materials, including cast-in-place, board-form concrete, red-painted hardy plank and foam insulation. The residence features an underground cistern, natural light, and high-performing windows to capture and move air through the home to reduce cooling costs. A second tour discovers a power station built in the 1920s that is being converted to a single-family residence.The fee for each tour is $63.

The hearings will be held in Sheraton Dallas Downtown. The Code Council has negotiated special room rates of $139 per night for those who register by April 15. Even more affordable governmental rates are also available. For more information on housing and to register online, go to www.iccsafe.org/SpringHearings.

The Council’s Board revised the code development process with input from members and other stakeholders. The revised procedure maintains the three-year publication cycle; continues to use the governmental consensus process; divides the codes into two groups, each having Code Development and Final Action Hearings in the spring and fall of the same year during the first two years of the publication cycle; eliminates the need for supplements to the codes halfway through the cycle; and reveals the new codes at the Annual Conference in year three of the cycle. The revised process anticipates the 2012 I-Codes will be available in April 2011.

The International Code Council, a membership association dedicated to building safety, fire prevention and energy efficiency, develops the codes used to construct residential and commercial buildings, including homes and schools. Most U.S. cities, counties and states choose the International Codes, building safety codes developed by the International Code Council. The International Codes also serve as the basis for construction of federal properties around the world, and as a reference for many nations outside the United States.