Virginia Plumbing & Mechanical Inspectors Honored as ICC Chapter of the Year; Illinois, Kentucky Chapters Earn Merit Awards

The Virginia Plumbing & Mechanical Inspectors Association Chapter of the International Code Council was presented with the 2011 Chapter of the Year Award during the ICC Annual Conference in November in Phoenix. The Code Administrators Association of Kentucky and the Northwest Building Officials and Code Administrators of Illinois were presented with Chapter Merit Awards.

To be recognized as the Chapter of the Year, a Chapter must demonstrate a high degree of professionalism in promoting the vision, mission and goals of the Code Council.

Founded in 1962, the VPMIA boasts a growing membership in most every jurisdiction in Virginia. Members are extremely active in code development and related activities. VPMIA members participate in the State Code Academy training and lobby for or against proposed code changes in state law, as necessary. Last year alone, the VPMIA proposed more than 120 code changes before the ICC code committees and membership, 85 percent of which were adopted into the model codes.

“The Chapter of the Year Award is only accomplished through the hard work of your members,” said VPMIA President Bane Compton. “I hope by winning this award it will inspire the future members of our organization to make the same accomplishment.”

Chapter Merit Awards were presented to the Code Administrators Association of Kentucky and the Northwest Building Officials and Code Administrators of Illinois. Merit Awards honor chapters that distinguish themselves through activities that demonstrate the goals and objectives of the Code Council.

CAAK was honored for its passion about education and its work with regional Chapters to accomplish its goals and objectives, and those of ICC. To support the education of its members and their families, CAAK, which is an umbrella chapter for three local ICC Chapters, underwrites scholarships, including a scholarship that allows one of its members to be a first-time ICC Annual Conference attendee.

“We begin to put together our education [program] a year and a half in advance,” said CAAK President Ron Tabor. “We accept this honor with great pride.”

NWBOCA was honored for its willingness to take on initiatives to support its members who lost their jobs as a result of the economy. The Chapter reimburses unemployed members for the cost to renew ICC certifications. It offers funding for education that leads to new certifications, and provides reimbursement for courses taken to maintain certifications. For several years the Chapter has emphasized the need for certification by rewarding three of its members who pass the most certification tests in a year.

NWBOCA Immediate Past President Dale Engebretson said the Chapter found it was “being blessed greatly with our funds. We talked about different venues we could do… to help those that had lost their jobs. So we offered them opportunities to get scholarships.”

The International Code Council is a member-focused association dedicated to helping the building safety community and construction industry provide safe and sustainable construction through the development of codes and standards used in the design, build and compliance process. Most U.S. communities and many global markets choose the International Codes.