Walls will head California Building Standards Commission. E. David Walls of Yuba City has been appointed executive director of the California Building Standards Commission. He has served as state housing program manager for the Department of Housing and Community Development since 2002. Walls served as a district representative in the state housing law program from 2001-2002. Prior to joining the Department of Housing and Community Development, Walls served as a building inspector for the County of Sutter from 1995-2001, and for the City of Galt from 1992-1995. Previous to that, he was a general contractor for Ayers Construction. Walls holds certifications in building, plumbing, mechanical and electrical inspection, and in code enforcement, and is an instructor of the California Building Standards Code at the University of California, Davis.

Hurricane Katrina bears down on the Gulf Coast. (NOAA)

Experts say lack of codes contributed to hurricane damage. A federal buildings inspection team found that much of the damage caused by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita could be attributed to a lack of building codes and poor construction practices in the Gulf Coast states. The report, prepared by the National Institute of Standards and Technology, recommends the adoption and enforcement of model codes, better gauging the hazards from storm surges, and licensing, regulating and educating roofing contractors. None of the states severely affected— Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Texas—had adopted statewide building codes before last year's storms.

A non-mitigated and mitigated home in Buras, Louisiana, and the resulting effects of a tidal surge from Hurricane Katrina. (FEMA)

Construction costs on the rise in Louisiana. The President of the New Orleans Home Builders says home costs have gone up 10 percent since Hurricane Katrina. In a Q & A with Builder Online, Toni Wendell says the new building code and the costs of labor and materials are driving up prices. Click here to read the entire article.

Panel wants to keep status quo for Florida's Panhandle. Under rules proposed by the Florida Building Commission, the state's Panhandle would continue to be exempt from wind-proofing requirements. Researchers told the commission the cost of adding impact-resistant glass or shutters to inland homes isn't worth the expected damage. Florida Secretary of Community Affairs, Thaddeus Cohen, disagrees. "Suppose we do a commercial," Cohen suggested. "We say, 'Window protection, $500. Improved roof connections, $2,500. Then we pan over to the FEMA trailer. 'Not having to live in a FEMA trailer for 24 months, priceless.'" A final vote is scheduled for August.

New-home sales rise in May. Sales of new single-family homes rose 4.6 percent to a seasonally adjusted, annual rate of 1.23 million units in May from a downwardly revised number in the previous month, according to figures reported by the U.S. Census Department. Three out of four regions posted gains in the Census figures for new-home sales in May. The South had the strongest gain, of 6 percent, followed by the West's 5.3 percent increase and the Midwest's 2.7 percent gain. Sales fell nearly 8 percent in the Northeast.

Former BOCA President named to U.S. Access Board. President Bush appointed Joseph Cirillo, R.A., of Middletown, R.I., to serve as a public member of the U.S. Access Board. The Access Board develops and maintains design criteria for the built environment, transportation, telecommunication products and information technology. Cirillo served as Building Officials and Code Administrators International, Inc. (BOCA) President from 1995-1996.

The following are upcoming events at which ICC staff will attend and/or host an exhibition booth:
July 13-14
Georgia Fire Chiefs Conference, Forsyth, GA

July 17
Georgia State Inspectors Association, Jekyll Island, GA

July 24
Indiana Association of Building Officials Annual Meeting, Evansville, IN

July 24-25
Mississippi Municipal League Annual Conference, Tunica, MS

ICC ePARTNERS
Volume II, Issue 7
July, 2006

ICC Vision and Mission Statements

Vision
Protecting the health, safety, and welfare of people by creating better buildings and safer communities.

Mission
Providing the highest quality codes, standards, products, and services for all concerned with the safety and performance of the built environment.

Former ICC, Legacy Supporter Passes Away

	Hauser

J. Lee Hauser, P.E., C.B.O., passed away June 25 in Raleigh, North Carolina. Hauser was employed by the North Carolina Department of Insurance as Engineering Division Deputy Commissioner and served on the North Carolina Building Code Council. He was a former member of the SBCCI Board of Directors, serving as President from 1991-1993.
"As I have learned about the rich history of the ICC and its legacy organizations, it is apparent that Lee Hauser played a significant role in the creation of the ICC and has long been a voice for building officials throughout this country," said COO Rick Weiland. "His soft-spoken style and thoughtful leadership will be greatly missed by the ICC," added Board President Henry Green.
Among his many honors, Hauser was a recipient of the Order of the Long Leaf Pine: the highest civilian honor granted in the state of North Carolina. Fellow honorees include journalist and author Charles Kuralt, poet and civil rights activist Maya Angelou, former University of North Carolina President William C. Friday, and artist Bob Timberlake.

Town Hall Code Meeting This Saturday
ICC is hosting a National Town Hall Code Meeting in Denver, Colorado, this Saturday, July 15, to update members and stakeholders on discussions with the International Association of Plumbing and Mechanical Officials (IAPMO) to create single plumbing and single mechanical codes. If you are unable to attend in person, you can still participate in this important event. The national Town Hall meeting will be webcast. Viewers should download the meeting agenda beforehand and will be able to submit comments and questions by e-mail.

Colorado Coalition Enhances School Safety
Colorado Governor Bill Owens recently signed the Colorado school safety bill. The legislation requires schools to be constructed in compliance with the International Fire Code®. It also requires all school inspectors to be certified by ICC.
"This is a great accomplishment by ICC members and supporters in Colorado," said ICC Government Relations Regional Manager Jason vonWeller. "The coalition's work should be an example to all ICC members of how they can milaffect public policy in their communities and state."
Several organizations partnered in support of the legislation, including the Colorado State Fire Chiefs Association, Fire Marshals Association of Colorado, Colorado Municipal League, Colorado Special Districts Association and the Colorado Chapter of ICC.

ICC Helps Develop National Pakistan Code
In response to the earthquake disaster in October 2005, Pakistan has begun development of a new national building code. The National Engineering Services Pakistan (Pvt.) Limited, working for the country's Ministry of Housing and Works, has requested technical assistance from ICC to help in the review process of the code's seismic design parameters and criteria for seismic-resistant design of buildings.
The work has been granted to International Services/Government Relations with cross support from the Business and Product Development Department. ICC's subcontractor is S.K Ghosh Associates, with S.K Ghosh and E.V Leyendecker as the primary technical reviewers. ICC's Sylvana Ricciarini is the Project Manager for this work while Principal Staff Engineer John Henry will provide technical support as part of the expert consulting team, and Senior Vice President of Business and Product Development Mark Johnson will provide contract support.

Conference Website Goes Live
ICC’s 2006 Annual Conference website is now live and includes information for online registrations, the ICC Expo and sponsorship opportunities, featured speakers, the conference schedule and frequently asked questions. The theme for this year’s conference is “Working to Build a Safer World.”

Code Changes and Hearings Schedule Posted
The 2006/2007 Proposed Changes to the I-Codes and code development hearings schedule for the 2006 Annual Conference have been posted on the main website. Printed copies of the proposed changes will be available in two volumes tomorrow.
The agenda is very full with more than 2,230 items filling two tracks. Track 1 (IFC, IBC except Structural, and IRCBuilding/ Energy) is anticipated to run through Oct. 1, with Track 2 lasting until Sept 28th.
In comparison, the Cincinnati 2005 code development hearings had an agenda of approximately 2,111 items. The newly implemented training program for the code committee chairs, vice chairs and moderators will be held Aug. 28 in Chicago.

Capitol Hill Day Pays Dividend

	Board Vice President Wally Bailey (right) visits with Rep. John Boozman during Capitol Hill Day events.

Rep. John Boozman of Arkansas has signed on as a co-sponsor of the Campus Fire Safety Act. The Congressman's decision was made following ICC Board Vice President Wally Bailey's visit to his office on Capitol Hill Day and follow-up letter. ICC representatives visited 100 congressional offices during the Building Safety Week event.

Fifteen Appointed to Wall Bracing Committee
The International Building Code Council (IBCC) met via conference call in May to review 63 applications submitted for consideration for the newly created Ad Hoc Committee on Wall Bracing. The IBCC appointed a committee of 15 members. A meeting will be held prior to the code development hearings at the Annual Conference in September for the ad hoc committee to review any related code changes.

Special ICC-ES Forum Deemed Successful
More than 70 report holders, laboratory representatives, consultants and others attended the staff-led discussion on product data submittal to determine how to accelerate the technical review process. All agreed that it would be helpful for report applicants to relate test data to specific acceptance criteria and to justify the use of alternate data. ICC Evaluation Service (ICC-ES) staff loses a lot of time trying to make these determinations themselves.
Due to the positive response, staff is considering another meeting before the October Evaluation Committee meeting in Birmingham.

WDMA Assists ICC Foundation
The Window and Door Manufacturers Association (WDMA) has become an active, supporting member of the Board of Governors of the International Code Council Foundation (ICCF). Acting President Jeffrey Lowinski was assigned a seat on the ICCF Board of Governors to represent WDMA and the window, door and skylight industry. As an ICCF member, WDMA will continue to promote responsible advocacy for building safety through sponsorship of community outreach programs such as the Silent Defender Awards and Project H.E.R.O. (Homes Eliminated of Restrictions and Obstacles).
"WDMA is pleased to partner with the ICCF and other supporters of building safety, accessibility and members of the community assisting others,” Lowinski said. “We've worked with the ICCF on several fronts to help promote its mission and its public safety programs, and will continue this emphasis in the future.”

QUICK-REFERENCE GUIDE TO FIRE SAFETY: OCCUPANCY-BASED REQUIREMENTS OF THE 2006 IBC®
#4004S06
List $30Member $24
This guide is organized by occupancy group to provide a quick review of the requirements for each of the 26 occupancy classifications identified in the IBC®. (60 pages)

SIGNIFICANT CHANGES TO THE IBC, 2006®
#7024S06
List $39.95Member $31.95
This is the first in a new series from Thomson Delmar and ICC. The authors, ICC staff Doug Thornburg and John Henry, focus on important changes in the 2006 I-Codes® that are utilized frequently, have had a change in application, or have special significance, including new technologies. This full-color text includes hundreds of photos and illustrations. (256 pages)

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