13 & 14 Building Code Updates (2)

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TO: FROM: SUBJECT: DATE: Mayor, & City Council Grayson Path, City Manager Andrew Mack, AICP Duke McGee, Building Code Updates March 27",2023 Director Planning and Community Development Building Official Item Nos. 13 & 14 BACKGROUND: In 2017, the City of Paris updated the City Building Codes by repealing the 2006 edition, and adopting the 2015 edition of the International Building Code (IBC), International Residential Code (IRC), International Plumbing Code (IPC), International Mechanical Code (IMC), International Existing Building Code (IEBC), International Fuel Gas Code (IFGC) and the 2014 National Electrical Code (hereinafter referred to as the ICC Family of Codes). The ICC Family of Codes provide the jurisdiction an enforceable set of regulations governing the safeguarding of life and property. It provides the City provisions for the issuance of permits and collection of fees. The ICC Family of Codes became the official Building Codes for the City of Paris in 2010, and is still the adopted Building Codes today. The ICC codes are drafted and updated by building professionals, code enforcing officials, industry representatives, design professionals and other interested parties every three years. The ICC Codes are recognized as minimal construction standards. Code updates and revisions take into account all aspects of construction best practices and methods. As new products, methods, technology and safety practices are introduced, evaluation and standardizing of these are required to insure proper application and safety. Existing regulation need to be evaluated to insure their purposes are still relevant and applicable. By keeping current with minimum building safety requirements we maintain best practices and help insure safe and lasting structures. Local government agencies are encouraged to keep current with code adoptions to maintain relevance in code enforcement and training. Keeping current with Code adoption will improve insurance ratings provided by the Insurance Service Office (ISO). The ISO is responsible for evaluating the effectiveness of code enforcement agencies, and assigning a Building Code Effectiveness Grading Schedule (BCEGS) rating that is used by insurance providers when setting policy premiums with appropriate risk. The ratings range from 1 to 10, with a rating classification of 1 being exemplary and 10 being deficient. The City of Paris was evaluated by the ISO in June of 2016 and received a rating of 9 for one and two family dwellings (Res) and 9 for industrial and commercial (Com). During the evaluation, the ISO representative indicated that in order to improve the rating from a 9, the City would need to adopt, enforce and maintain a code that is within 5 years of its release. This was one of the reasons the City updated to the 2015 ICC codes in 2017. The City was re-evaluated in 2021 and was rated 6 (Res) 6 (Com). Today 2023 we are in the same position as 2016, with our adopted 2015 codes being 8 years post release.