By the end of June, hurricane protection professionals in Florida should know what the newest edition of the state’s building code—Florida Building Code 2007—will require and what impact it will have on their industry before it is scheduled to take effect October 1, 2008.

The public posting of the code with changes is required at least six months before implementation. But members of the International Hurricane Protection Association (IHPA) will have an even better idea of what the Code will be like because all through the three-year review and modification process, they have been briefed—and, in fact, they have had a hand in creating some of the changes—because of Joe Belcher, JDB Code Services, Inc., the IHPA’s code consultant.

Belcher represents the interests of the IHPA at all of the Florida Building Commission’s Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) meetings acting on direction from the IHPA board on matters effecting the industry and its members—such as permitting and inspection of hurricane protection products in areas where they are required during construction.

It’s a never-ending process. The Florida Building Code is what is known as a living document, constantly being reviewed, discussed, modified and updated. As one cycle ends resulting in a new edition, a new cycle begins all over again.

It can be confusing to a layperson, but it’s a very open and very democratic process. Everybody has four opportunities to have his say—two online and two in person at public meetings. “That’s one of the things the [Florida Building] Commission has strived to do from the beginning: to foster public comment and make everything available for public comment. They’ve put out publications to try to educate the public that the system is there, trying to get it to where people know what’s going on,” says Belcher.

It is a system and a Code that has put Florida at the nation’s forefront—especially where it comes to storm protection. “Florida has been the leader in the Southeast, a lot of areas watch what we do. We’re quite good.” Belcher notes. “I think it’s working very well.”

FULL CYCLE
Belcher’s involvement with construction codes began in 1976 as a fire inspector for Brevard County Fire Control. He has been a code enforcement official for the Orange County Building Dept. and a deputy building official for Altamonte Springs, FL. Before starting JDB Code Services, Belcher got a taste of working with the public and government agencies as a building official for the city of Gainesville where, among other responsibilities, he represented the city at national, state and local code promulgation proceedings. He is even a certified general contractor. “I’ve done everything except design,” he states.

Belcher explains that Florida’s decision to upgrade and improve it’s building codes began, as the hurricane protection industry itself, following Hurricane Andrew in 1992. “Andrew came through and there was such massive damage, and Florida was supposed to have the toughest codes,” he says. The state’s governor at the time, Lawton Mainor Chiles, set up a building code study commission. The commission found that there were three different model codes in use. “Most of the state used the Standard Code, but some guys were using the ’73 edition and the rest of the state was using the ’97 edition. Then everybody had local amendments, so that the designer didn’t know what code to use from one jurisdiction to the next—even if the boundary line was across the street, they could be looking at a whole different set of regulations,” Belcher says.

In response, the legislature created the Florida Building Commission, which started meeting with a deadline of December 1998 to adopt the first Florida Building Code. The legislature wanted this new code to be based on one of the recognized model codes, either the national model codes or the South Florida building code, Belcher explains. They chose what was known as the Standard Building Code because 64 out of 67 counties already used that code. “The international code was not a complete code, it was still a draft code,” he adds.
With the Code came the process—the three-year cycle needed to keep the Florida Building Code up-to-date and to incorporate advances in technology and materials.

“The Commission has to update the code every three years. When the new International Building Code (IBC) comes out, [the Commission is] supposed to look at [the Florida] code and they’re supposed to adopt the new edition of the International Building Code and make the Florida modifications to it.

“We’re in the cycle right now. The deadline for submitting code changes was last December. Anybody can submit a code change. You do it online. All the proposed code changes are categorized. They are all posted on the Web site and a notice is sent. There’s a 45-day public comment period. Anybody can comment for, against, they can request a modification, whatever.”

The nine standing TACs, each chaired by a Commissioner, hold the first of two sets of public hearings on the proposed changes. After hearing public comment (the last round was held in March in St. Augustine), the TACs can recommend approval as modified—or not. Changes are posted again on the Web site for another 45-day comment period. Then, the second round of public hearings is held. (This coming up in late June in Miami.) A final recommendation is made to the Commission, which will act on the proposals and file the changes with the Secretary of State. The law requires a six-month period before implementation of the new codes. “That’s time to get training out, for the people who use the Code to get a copy and know what the changes are,” Belcher explains.

“[But] there’s a lot of other things going on all the time,” Belcher adds. For example, there’s the state legislature. “This last regular session, the legislature directed the Commission to make changes to the code, so it’s not just that process. Plus we’re still looking at all the issues from some of the hurricanes of 2004 and 2005 in discussions in some of the work groups.”

DYNAMIC PROCESS
This is the work Belcher enjoys—meeting with the TACs and representing his clients’ interests, but especially with the individual work groups. “The work groups are set up to deal with specific questions, like the labeling of garage doors and shutters. We put a code change in this last time that will require labeling for shutters. I was on the work group representing IHPA,” Belcher says (see HP, Spring 2007, page 9).

A criticism of Florida’s code process is that some believe the code has changed too many times in recent years and the Florida legislature is trying to cut down on that. But Belcher points out that some of the changes are to fix “glitches.” In trying to combine and coordinate the best and most appropriate parts of codes—the standard code and the International Residential Code—sometimes things just get missed. Sometimes the wording gets confused or some interpret the same wording differently. “It’s getting easier now because we’re going on our second edition of the International Code,” Belcher notes.

Another process still being worked on is hurricane protection product approval. It took years to get a statewide system set up—with everyone looking out for his own interests—but there also is the fact that Miami-Dade County has had its own testing application standards. Considered the most stringent in the state, and therefore the country, the testing often begins with ASTM protocols, but creates its own test procedures when needed. Looking ahead, Belcher sees the statewide approval process becoming more like the Miami-Dade process. After all, as Belcher says, it’s a continuing process. “It’s not static, it’s
dynamic.”