Advocacy guidelines for the code hearings

The International Code Council Annual Conference, Public Comment Hearings and Expo are scheduled to begin on Sunday, Oct. 21, in Richmond, Va. Hundreds of building safety professionals from across the U.S. and around the world will gather to learn, to network and to participate in the Public Comment Hearings for the 2021 International Codes. A number of code change proposals are being considered this year that address a wide range of topics, including tall wood buildings, exterior walls, fire safety during construction, A2L and B2L refrigerants, and more.

The Code Council is the impartial convener of these hearings. Our job is to ensure a transparent process and to provide a space for balanced debate and deliberation on code change proposals. To that end, the Code Council has advocacy guidelines and procedures to guarantee a fair hearing process. These guidelines help ensure that financial resources are not a factor in the debate or outcome.

Our policy prohibits distributing organized advocacy information of any kind during the annual conference or code hearings at sites under contract with the Code Council. Examples of prohibited activities include, but are not limited to:

• Distributing information at the time of hotel check-in, including leaflets or other printed information at contract hotels.
• Distributing information to the individual hotel sleeping rooms at contract hotels, including video broadcasts and outside door or under door drops of materials.
• Distributing information in the common areas of the conference center or contract hotels, such as corridors, open areas, outer lobbies, ballrooms, exhibit halls, meeting rooms or other locales.

The hotels and conference center also have rules in place to prevent unauthorized distribution of materials. Together we will be diligently enforcing these policies. However, we recognize that we cannot be everywhere at once. We rely on participants in this process to uphold themselves and their colleagues to the highest standards of professionalism and ethical behavior. To read our Code of Ethics, click here.

Some limited sponsorships for Code Council events are available each year. Sponsorships may promote an organization’s brand as long as that promotion does not rise to the level of advocating a position on code changes. Organizations may also purchase a booth for the purpose of organizational marketing at the conference expo, subject to the discretion of the Code Council.

This policy is not intended to regulate spontaneous, social or casual interaction between delegates or attendees at the hearings and conference.

For more information about the policies on the distribution of materials in the hearing rooms, see Council Policy 28.