ISO, an advisory organization on property and casualty insurance risk, has released the National Building Code Assessment Report on the status of the nation’s building codes. The report includes individual assessments of each participating state and provides a comprehensive examination of building codes and its enforcement in 20,800 communities representing 87% percent of the U.S. population.

Robert Andrews, vice president and chief field operations officer, ISO' Community Hazard Mitigation says, "building codes have taken on even more importance for property owners, insurers, builders, local and federal government agencies and emergency response teams." The report supports community resilience through codes as "communities with well-enforced, up-to-date codes generally demonstrate better loss experience. Insurance rates should reflect that."

Along with the Insurance Institute for Business and Home Safety (IBHS), ISO developed the Building Code Effectiveness Grading Schedule (BCEGS) to assess a community’s building code enforcement in three areas: code administration, plan review and field inspection. NRMCA has supported national and state efforts to strengthen codes for community resilience though the International Code Council, the US Green Building Council and state legislative and regulatory bodies.

For more information on national codes and standards contact Tien Peng at tpeng@nrmca.org or 206-913-8535. For more information on state and local initiatives, contact John Loyer at JLoyer@nrmca.org or 703-675-7603.