WABO Fall Quarterly Business Meeting

Campbell's Resort, Chelan, Washington

October 19-20, 2017

 

President's Report - Tom Phillips

Greetings fellow WABO members!  I hope everyone is staying warm despite the recent drop in temperatures around the State.  It has been many years since we have seen snow in the first week of November.  We all know how unpredictable the weather can be as we watched the devastating storms in the South and Puerto Rico this Fall.  Between extreme weather, forest fires and earthquakes we can’t help but be reminded of the importance of emergency preparedness, both for your home and where you work.   I am very proud of the work our Emergency Management Committee has done over the last few years, led by Committee Chair Ray Cockerham and the continuous efforts of Jon Siu.

I need to give a shout out to Tim Nogler and Dave Spencer.  Please read the separate articles in this newsletter about them, but I have to say a few words.  Tim Nogler is retiring after 21 years as the State Building Code Council’s Managing Director and I have had the pleasure of working with him for many of those years.  I found Tim to be ethical, transparent, hardworking and fun to be around!  Congratulations on a well-deserved retirement.  Also, congratulations to Dave Spencer for being elected to the ICC Board of Directors!  Dave worked very hard to make this happen and I’m certain he will work just as hard for us on the ICC Board.

We are nearing the next legislative session in Olympia so please plan to attend the one-day WABO legislative meeting on January 25th in Tumwater.  The legislative meetings are very educational as we discuss our legislative priorities but also get bussed from the meeting for a couple of hours on the ‘Hill’.  While at the Capitol we break into small groups and meet with our legislators, prepared with talking points to inform them of WABO’s priorities.  These meetings provide our members with a better understanding of how State politics work and how you can use your voice to make our government better.

Finally, I end this report encouraging you to consider ways you can be more involved in WABO.  We have numerous committees and projects that could be your opportunity to become a WABO leader.  Take something you are passionate about and build it up through one of our committees or other venues.  WABO has many opportunities that will help with your professional development and make our organization stronger.

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WABO members busy at work at the 2017 Fall Business meeting in Chelan!

Committee Reports:

Technical Code Development - Chair Lee Kranz

 

  • TCD Chairman, Lee Kranz, made the following announcements:
    • ICC has installed all Group A code into cdpACCESS so it is now available to work on your code proposals.  Any code proposals that are submitted on behalf of WABO TCD must first be approved by the Committee.
    • The deadline to get Group A code change proposals to ICC using cdpACCESS is Midnight on January 8, 2018.
    • Anyone planning to attend the Group A Committee Action Hearings in Columbus should reserve their hotel rooms as soon as ICC announces the group rates.  Rooms fill up fast and you don’t want to be left out. 
  • The ICC code development process improvement efforts were shared with the membership.  The following revisions are included in CP28:
    • 3.6.3: Revisions to further clarify the process for referencing new standards and adding new I-Code text to correlate with updated standards. In both cases, the new/updated standard must be published by the PCH (the updated std. does not fall under the admin update provisions that stipulate the std. must be done by 12/1/third year.
    • 5.4.4: When the proponent of the code change is in the hearing room and objects to a hearing order change that involves his/her change, the hearing order change will not be implemented…applies to PCH too.
    • 5.4.5: New provisions to allow tabling of code changes. Must identify the date/time or the location in the agenda on where to table to. Same proponent ability to veto the table as noted above. Requires 2/3 vote to table. Resume tabled code change at the location in testimony where it was tabled….applies to PCH too.
    • 5.5.5: Feedback to require modifications to be submitted in advance was not approved.
    • 6.4.6:  Public comments now require cost impact statements.
    • 11.2: Specific process for CCC action to address PCH/OGCV actions…..open, transparent with public notices. Process details to be included in CP44 which is the council policy for the Code Correlation Committee.
  • The State Building Code Council Group 1 code development cycle is underway and the Technical Advisory Groups are just getting started.  There were no TAG reports.  The Group 1 codes include the 2018 Editions of the IBC, IEBC, IFC and WSEC-C.
  • The Committee continued to evaluate code change concepts included in the Google Docs log and made several decisions on which proposals should Not Be Supported (NS), have the Concept Approved (CA) or be Approved to Submit (ATS).  Anyone wishing to have access to the Google Docs log should contact Angela Haupt to request having your name added to the list. 

Respectfully,

Lee J. Kranz, CBO, ACO

WABO TCDC Chairman

 

Emergency Manangement Committee - Chair Ray Cockerham

Emergency Managment Chair, Ray Cockerham led the committee meeting.

Reviewed the November 4th Governors directive

LINK  Governor Inslee - Resilient Washington Directive 16-19

Highlights of the Governors directive related to WABO interests:

State departments are to review gaps in preparedness plans, public education strategies, coordinated action plans,( State, Local and Federal), and prioritize and estimate costs for earthquake preparedness.

Military is to facilitate the subcabinet process and states efforts enhancing resiliency and develop processes to address gaps in annual repot due June 30, 2017 (Resilient WA subcabinet draft report below)

Several other State departments received direction by the Governor’s directive.

 

January 17, 2017 Kick-off meeting for State Departments for Resilient Washington Subcabinet Draft report

LINK Draft Resilient Washington Subcabinet Report 9/22/2017

WASafe as the collaboration of SEAW, AIA, ASCE and WABO is working on a memorandum of understanding for an operational understanding of WAsafe’s integration into the EMD process.  This is closely related to the developments and progress resulting from the Governor’s Directive, Resilient Washington Subcabinet and WAsafe’s efforts for a uniform enrollment program for safety evaluation inspections.

Please use these links to promote the Two Weeks Ready Campaign in conjunction with your EMD

LINK Two weeks ready Campaign

 

Government Relations Committee - Amy Brackenbury & Tom Phillips

The Government Relations committee met at the Fall 2017 Business meeting and many topics were discussed.

  • Legislation to fund the State Building Code Council. Amy Brackenbury reported she was attending a meeting with Representatives Senn and Chapman to discuss the bill. The Committee reaffirmed its support for the legislation.
  • Resiliency and preparedness as they relate to building codes.  Amy reported that legislators may be asking for WABO members’ support in speaking with editorial boards about these issues. 
  • A proposal was discussed to delay adoption of the building code to allow the incorporation of state amendments to the base code. 
  • IBEW’s proposed legislation to require city inspectors to conduct other L&I related inspections.  The committee reaffirmed their opposition.
  • Hirst decision and its impact on local building departments.

Tom Phillips also presented the committee a list of the proposed legislative priorities for the Association of Washington Cities and the Master Builders Association of King & Snohomish Counties.

 

Education Committee - Chair Rick Prosser

The Education Committee spent their time working on the 2018 Annual Education Institute. Discussions were held on what type of classes are needed at the jurisdictions and several classes were selected based on committee input.

The 2018 Annual Education Institute will feature a 4 day CBO training track which will spend two days on technical, one day on management and one day on legal.  Other classes that will be offered are: Plumbing System Illustrated, Fire-Rated Assemblies,Fire Stop & Joint Systems,  Earthquake Seismic Retrofit, ATC 20/45, Electronic Pan Review/Best Practices, IRC Bracing and much more.  The WABO office will be coordinating the presenters for the courses and will be working on the Institute brochure.

 

Outreach Report – Chair Todd Blevins

The Outreach Committee collaborated with the Education Committtee to help in the selection process of the 2018 Annual Education Institute classes.  Outreach Committee has nothing to report.