Current through Reg. 50, No. 187; September 24, 2024
(1) The Florida Building Commission shall
update the Florida Building Code triennially in accordance with Section
553.73(7), F.S.
When updating the code, the Commission shall review the most current updates to
the model codes including, but not limited to, the International Building Code,
the International Fuel Gas Code, the International Existing Building Code, the
International Mechanical Code, the International Plumbing Code, the
International Residential Code, the International Energy Conservation Code, and
the National Electrical Code. The Commission shall also consider its own
interpretations and declaratory statements, any relevant appellate decisions,
and local technical amendments. For the purpose of conducting the review of the
model codes, the following steps will be undertaken:
(a) The Commission shall select the model
codes that will be used to conduct its review.
(b) Commission staff shall review the model
codes and identify any provisions which overlap with the provisions of the
Florida Building Code, correlate directly with the provisions of the Florida
Building Code, provide for energy efficiency standards that meet or exceed the
national energy standards mandated by Title III of the Energy Conservation and
Protection Act, or are necessary to maintain eligibility for federal funding
and discounts from the National Flood Insurance Program, the Federal Emergency
Management Agency, or the United States Department of Housing and Urban
Development, in accordance with Section
553.73(7),
F.S.
(c) After the latest updates
of the model codes are published and the staff review is completed, a complete
listing of the changes to the model codes will be posted and made available for
public review and comment on the Building Code Information System (BCIS) for a
minimum of 45 days prior to review by the Commission's Technical Advisory
Committees (TACs).
(d) Before
review by the Commission's TACs, changes affecting residential construction
shall be reviewed by the Residential Construction Cost Impact Workgroup
(RCCIWG), and the report of the RCCIWG shall be made available to the
TACs.
(e) The Commission's TACs
shall review the model code provisions in their area of expertise for potential
inclusion in the updated Florida Building Code. Should a model code provision
overlap in the expertise of multiple TACs, all relevant TACs shall review the
provision. The TACs shall also review any public comments. The TACs may make
the following recommendations to the Commission:
1. That the Commission reject certain model
code provisions by consent agenda. Model code provisions may be recommended for
rejection due to such issues as being unnecessary, negatively impacting the
level of public health, safety, or general welfare provided by an existing
Florida Building Code provision, diminishing the requirements of provisions
related to wind resistance or water intrusion, unnecessarily imposing
additional costs, or potentially requiring modification or further
investigation before being adopted for use in this state.
2. That the Commission approve certain model
code provisions by consent agenda. When considering whether to recommend
inclusion on a consent agenda for approval, the TACs shall consider such
criteria as whether the model code provisions are editorial or organizational
in nature, correct an error, provide clarification, provide for alternative
design methods, improve the effectiveness of the code, are uncontroversial to
affected stakeholders, or are required by law.
3. That the Commission approve or reject
certain model code provisions after considering them individually. When
recommending individual consideration of model code updates, the TACs shall
consider such criteria as whether the update has the potential to impose
significant costs, cause confusion or regulatory difficulty, may be
unnecessary, is highly controversial to affected stakeholders, or requires
further evaluation.
The TACs' recommendations shall be accompanied by a brief
explanatory remark, and will be posted on the Commission's
website.
(f) After
the TACs have reviewed the model code provisions and made their recommendations
pursuant to paragraph (e), the Commission shall meet to determine which model
code provisions to include in the updated edition of the Florida Building Code.
Notwithstanding the TACs' recommendations, Commissioners may specify that
particular provisions on consent agendas be considered individually. After
Commission approval, all of the approved changes to the Florida Building Code
will be made available on the Commission's website. The public will then have
the opportunity to submit amendments to the Florida Building Code and the
approved changes to the Florida Building Code pursuant to subsection (2) of
this rule.
(2) The
Commission may amend the Code at any time pursuant to the requirements of
Section 553.73(7)(c) or
(8), F.S., and once each year pursuant to
Section 553.73(9), F.S.
Amendments to the Florida Building Code submitted pursuant to Section
553.73(7)(c), (8) or
(9), F.S., shall be submitted on the Code
Amendment Proposal Form, No.
61G20-1.001, effective March
2018, adopted and incorporated herein, which may be found on the BCIS at
http://www.floridabuilding.org/cm/cm_code_srch.aspx,
or at http://www.flrules.org/Gateway/reference.asp?No=Ref-08931
or by contacting the Department of Business and Professional Regulation, Office
of Codes & Standards, 2601 Blair Stone Road, Tallahassee, Florida
32399-0772. The Code Amendment Proposal Form shall be submitted online at
http://www.floridabuilding.org/cm/cm_code_srch.aspx
and shall be reviewed by Commission staff for sufficiency. Commission staff
shall ascertain 1) whether the amendment to the code has been submitted in
legislative format, 2) if the rationale for amending the code has been
provided, and 3) if all required questions regarding fiscal and other impacts
have been answered by the proponent. The term "NA" or "Not applicable" shall be
considered an insufficient answer to statutorily required questions. If a
proposed code amendment is submitted more than two weeks prior to the deadline
established and staff finds the proposal to be insufficient, staff shall notify
the proponent via email of the nature of its insufficiency and that if the
proponent of the amendment elects to resubmit the proposal curing the
insufficiency, it must be resubmitted prior to the deadline. Once a Code
Amendment Proposal has been found sufficient, Commission staff shall verify
such status online, enabling the BCIS to show the proposal to the general
public for comment. Code Amendment Proposals found insufficient shall not be
verified or considered as building code amendments in the code amendment
process.
(a) Each proposed amendment will be
heard first by the appropriate TAC, which will consider the proposal and all
documentation submitted therewith, and consider whether to recommend approval,
which shall require a two-thirds vote of TAC members or alternates in
attendance. The TAC may modify a proposed amendment if it provides the
documentation required by subsection (2) of this rule. Approval of
modifications to the proposed amendment shall require a two-thirds vote of TAC
members or alternates in attendance. After modification, the TAC must then vote
whether to recommend adoption as amended, which shall require a two-thirds vote
of TAC members or alternates in attendance.
(b) The Commission shall publish each
proposed amendment on its website at
www.floridabuilding.org at least 45 days
prior to its consideration by the appropriate TAC. This notice may run
concurrently with the notice required by Section
120.54(2),
F.S., and is not intended to extend the required rulemaking timeframes
therein.
(c) The Commission shall
consider and vote upon each proposed amendment after consideration by at least
one TAC. The decision of the Commission to approve a proposed amendment shall
be by at least the required three-fourths vote of Commissioners in attendance.
Those proposals failing to meet the vote requirement shall not be adopted. The
Commission may modify a proposed amendment upon a three-fourths vote of
Commissioners in attendance, provided that the form required by subsection (2)
of this rule is amended to reflect the modification and supporting
documentation is submitted.
(d) The
Commission shall publish each proposed amendment on the BCIS at
www.floridabuilding.org at least
45 days prior to its consideration by the Commission. This notice may run
concurrently with the notice required by Section
120.54(3),
F.S., and is not intended to extend the required rulemaking timeframes
therein.
(3) Each
amendment approved for adoption by the Florida Building Commission pursuant to
Section 553.73(9),
F.S., shall take effect no earlier than three months after the rule amendment
is filed for adoption with the Department of State.
Rulemaking Authority
553.73(3),
(7)-(9),
553.76(1), (2),
(4),
553.77 FS. Law Implemented
553.73(3),
(7)-(9),
553.76(2),
553.77
FS.
New 11-20-01, Amended 6-8-05, 2-28-06, 9-13-07, 7-30-08,
Formerly 9B-3.050,
9N-2.002, Amended 7-1-13,
3-27-18, 9-10-20.
