State and local housing, property maintenance, and building codes contain a wide array of legal requirements pertaining to housing construction and maintenance. Housing and building codes, for example, typically contain provisions governing moisture, pests, and ventilation.

Many jurisdictions rely on “model” codes to provide the framework for local fire, building, housing, property maintenance, plumbing, electrical, energy, and mechanical codes. Currently, these model codes are developed by the International Code Council (ICC), which was founded in 1994 by three regional code associations. ICC has moved away from a regional approach to code development, toward the development of national model codes. The drawback to this national approach is that the codes are less able to account for local and regional factors such as climate and housing type. For current information on model code adoptions by state and local jurisdictions, see www.iccsafe.org/government/adoption.html.

Proposals for 2009-2010 Code Change Cycle

The Alliance and National Center for Healthy Housing submitted proposals to the ICC for the 2009-2010 code change cycle. Click here for a PDF of all proposals. The codes of interest are the International Building Code (IBC), International Property Maintenance Code (IPMC), International Residential Code (IRC), and International Existing Building Code (IEBC). The proposals address:

• Health and Safety Chapter: Prevent and eliminate health hazards by requiring compliance with health standards in IPMC, especially for toxics.

• Carbon Monoxide (CO) Alarms: Require alarms in IEBC and IPMC consistent with IRC language adopted last cycle.

• Space Heaters: Prohibit in IPMC use of unvented, portable fuel-burning space heaters as a primary source of heat, and if used, require a CO alarm.

• Renovations: Modify IEBC to require compliance with EPA’s RRP Rule in order to prevent lead hazards.

• Pre-1978 Structures: Modify IPMC to explicitly prohibit deteriorated paint because it is a presumed hazard in pre-1978 buildings, and require lead-safe repair unless approved test proves paint is not lead-based paint.

• Pest Control: Modify IPMC to require certified professional to eliminate pests in response to a pest control order.

• Infestation: Expand IPMC definition to expressly include bedbugs, cockroaches, and pest rodents, as well as visible pest residues or debris unless there is clear evidence that the pest has been eliminated.

• Sanitary: Add definition to IPMC to specify that this is a condition that is clean and free of pest infestations and residues; human and animal waste; mold; wastewater; sewage; rotting material; and uncontained rubbish or garbage.

• Formaldehyde and Wood Products: Update IBC and IRC to incorporate latest versions of the relevant ANSI standards. These ANSI standards incorporate the stringent California standards for formaldehyde emissions from wood products.

• Radon: Modify the IRC to require Radon Resistant New Constructionin accordance with the current Appendix F in the IRC or ASTM standard 1465 (two proposals).

• Moldy Building Materials: Modify IEBC and IPMC to require repair/removal/ remediation of moldy permeable materials made of or containing organic materials, such as but not limited to wood, textiles, paint, cellulose insulation, and paper, including paper-faced gypsum board.

• Swimming Pool Fencing: Modify the IRC to require four sides of fencing around pools.

• Water Temperature Limits: Modify IEBC to reflect IRC language.

The organizations also support proposals from the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers to require compliance with ASHRAE’s 62.2 standard for ventilation of low-rise residential buildings: whole-house mechanical ventilation; local ventilation from kitchens and bathrooms; preventing migration of contaminants from an attached garage; and exhaust of range hoods to the outside.

The proposals were submitted on June 1. ICC committees will consider the proposals as part of their deliberations in Baltimore from Oct. 24 to Nov. 11, 2009 and then they will receive a final vote (by government agency ICC members only) at a hearing in Charlotte in the fall of 2010. Both meetings are open to the public. Click here for a list of the dates for the Baltimore hearings. The Alliance encourages healthy homes advocates and code officials in all jurisdictions to support these proposals at the ICC hearings. However, only government staff can vote at the final hearing.

Click here for the Alliance and the National Center for Healthy Housing's proposals to the International Code Council for the 2007-08 code change cycle.

For more information on the model code campaign, contact Jane Malone at jmalone@afhh.org.

Current Model Codes' Provisions Pertaining to Healthy Homes

The chart below highlights provisions found in model codes that address several attributes of a healthy home: dry (water and moisture control); toxin-free; well ventilated (to ensure adequate indoor air quality); pest-free; and other (comfortable, for example). Brief summaries of the code sections are provided in the linked files, grouped according to topic (dry, etc.). (Explanatory notes or comments are in parentheses.) If you prefer, a PDF version features the table and summaries in one document.

About the Codes

• The IPMC applies to existing residential and commercial structures and premises.

• The IRC regulates the construction, alteration, repair, use, and occupancy of detached one- and two-family dwellings and townhouses not more than three stories high. While the section numbers in the code are preceded by a letter, e.g., “R” for the administrative, definitions, and building, planning, and construction portions of the code, “N” for the energy conservation portion, etc., those prefixes have been omitted from this document.

• The IBC governs new construction in residential buildings four or more stories high.

• The IECC sets forth alternative compliance approaches for new construction in both residential (one-and two-family buildings, and multi-family buildings three or less stories in height) and commercial buildings (including residential buildings four or more stories high). For residential buildings, these approaches include a systems approach, which considers the entire building and its energy-using systems as a whole; an approach based on the performance of components in the building envelope; an approach based upon the performance of the building envelope as a whole; and others. Commercial buildings can comply using a prescriptive approach, which sets standards for the building envelope, mechanical, lighting, and service water-heating subsystems; a total building performance approach; or an energy cost budget approach. Therefore, the code provisions cited in this table may not be required in a particular building if that building is constructed using an alternative approach to compliance.

• The IMC governs the design, installation, maintenance, alteration, and inspection of permanently installed mechanical systems used to control environmental conditions within buildings. The IMC does not require the removal and replacement of existing mechanical systems, although work performed on existing systems must conform to the code’s requirements for new work.