Lexington Fayette Achieves IAS Code Enforcement Department Accreditation

The Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government Code Enforcement Division (LFUCG) has become the first code enforcement department in the Commonwealth of Kentucky to achieve International Accreditation Service (IAS) Code Enforcement Department Accreditation.

The IAS Building and Code Enforcement Department Accreditation (BDA) demonstrates that code enforcement departments have met the national standard and are competent to provide unparalleled public safety services for their communities.

LFUCG Code Enforcement Director and past presiding officer of the International Code Council, Alex “Cash” Olszowy, pursued IAS accreditation to “elevate the level of accountability of property maintenance codes and their enforcement.”

“From top to bottom the fundamental auditing involved by the department proves we are using and abiding by best practices,” said Mr. Olszowy when asked about the benefits of accreditation to the division.

Obtaining Code Council Support with Federal Funding Opportunities

During his tenure on the Code Council Board of Directors, Olszowy sought to achieve IAS BDA for LFUGC prior to his retirement.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) grant program provided funding for such opportunities and Olszowy felt it was “the perfect opportunity to pursue BDA for LFUGC.” In fact, the BRIC grant funding awarded to LFUGC covered 75 percent of the cost of becoming IAS accredited to the BDA program. The video announcement from the Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government Council Meeting regarding the accreditation can be viewed here. 

“The pre-application process is straight forward, especially with accreditation listed as one of the specific activities the grants are for,” said Olszowy. IAS and the Code Council’s Government Relations department were integral in providing us with the information that we needed to complete the application process. LFUGC applied for the BRIC funding during their fiscal year 2020 and was awarded the funds in 2023. 

To learn more about FEMA’s BRIC Grant program, visit their website. 

How to Apply for Code Enforcement Department Accreditation

You can apply for BDA on the IAS portal website. The BDA program is open to local building and code enforcement departments, as well as third-party companies providing building department services. 

BDA is based on IAS Accreditation Criteria for Building Code Regulatory Agencies and Third-Party Service Providers (AC251). Getting accredited involves an assessment of the department’s goals, policies, and procedures, as well as permitting, inspections and plan reviews.  

Additional information regarding the IAS Building Department Accreditation program may be found here.