Building Code Board reviews 2024 IECC residential changes; moves IPMC fee schedule outside code

At a meeting of the Building Code Board, members approved minutes from the board’s February 6 meeting and heard staff presentations about moving the International Property Maintenance Code (IPMC) fee schedule out of the code text and a line-by-line review of changes between the 2021 and 2024 International Energy Conservation Code (IECC) for residential construction.

The change to the IPMC fee schedule is an administrative step to make fees a separate, stand-alone schedule rather than embedded in the code, staff said. “Typically when we adopt fees we adopt it in with the code for the IPMC and this is the only code we do it for,” Sean, a staff member, said. He said the move would allow future fee updates to go to the city commission without returning to this board.

Board members spent the bulk of the meeting on a detailed staff presentation of the IECC residential provisions. Melissa, a staff member, summarized dozens of reorganizations and clarifications in the 2024 residential sections and highlighted the specific requirements that she said carry practical implications for local construction.

Melissa said many sections were reorganized or converted to tables for clarity and that the overall intent of the code has not changed, but several changes could affect local practice. On air leakage, she noted the maximum air leakage rate for Climate Zone 6 was reduced to 2.5 air changes per hour (ACH) and that the code allows up to 4 ACH when a building complies with alternate provisions in the code. “The maximum air leakage rate has been…