Fillmore introduces 2025 building‑code package and schedules Nov. 12 public hearing

City staff introduced an ordinance and accompanying resolution Oct. 28 to adopt the 2025 editions of the California building standards and related model codes, and to set a public hearing for Nov. 12.

Kevin (city staff) told the council that the city hired Bureau Veritas to assist with technical review and said the local adoption follows a state timeline. "Every 3 years, the building code needs to be adopted," Kevin said, noting the local adoption must occur within 180 days of the state adoption and that the new code would take effect Jan. 1, 2026 (with local business-day effect on Jan. 2).

Bureau Veritas consultant Trang Wen described the state process and the new Wildland‑Urban Interface code, explaining that the state limited new local amendments after Sept. 30, 2025 but allows carryover of prior amendments. "This code cycle includes the wildland‑urban interface requirements as a reflection of recent fires," Trang Wen said, and he described administrative amendments proposed by local engineering and fire staff — for example, assigning grading approval for an entire site to the city engineer while retaining building official authority for soils directly under a structure.

Councilmembers asked whether code provisions can adapt to new scientific findings between cycles; the presenter described that technical code changes are vetted through code committees, industry input and technical studies before adoption at the state level.

Council introduced Ordinance 25‑989 to adopt the 2025 California building, electrical, mechanical, plumbing, energy, historical, residential, existing building, green building standard codes and the Wildland‑Urban Interface code, with local amendments and a CEQA exemption; the council adopted Resolution 25‑4084 finding local climatic, topographic and geographic conditions that justify certain local modifications and set a public hearing for Nov. 12, 2025. The motion carried unanimously.

The introduction is the first formal step; adoption requires the Nov. 12 public hearing and subsequent vote. Staff said the proposed local amendments are administrative in nature except where technical conditions justified an amendment based on local climate, soils or topography.