I had the pleasure of representing ASA members at the recent International Code Council (ICC) Hearings held in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania from September 21st thru the 25th. The focus of the Hearings was to go over public comments received in response to the ICC Technical Committee (TC) decisions reached at the first public hearings held in May, 2021. The following are highlights of the hearing.

International Plumbing Code (IPC)

• Drinking Fountains – the current IPC does not require drinking fountains for facilities with an occupant load under 15. ASA spoke against a proposal to change the occupant load to 30. In addition, ASA opposed a second proposal that would potentially increase the scope of the current exemption not requiring restaurants to have a drinking fountain when providing free water to go beyond just restaurants. The ICC Government Official members voted in support of both positions taken by ASA.
• Water Filter Certification - ASA continued to oppose the inclusion of ASSE 1087 - Commercial and Food Service Water Treatment Equipment Utilizing Drinking Water into the IPC since it could lead to requiring our vendor members to obtain duplicative and potentially conflicting certifications for water filters. The ICC Government Official members voted in support of the ASA position.
• Water Efficient Showerheads – ASA joined with PMI and the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) in opposing the ICC TC decision to accept a proposal to reduce the maximum flow rate for showerheads from 2.5 gpm down to 2.0 gpm.  Our position was not supported by the ICC Government Official members.

International Residential Code (IRC)

• Hot Water Piping – the current IRC sets a maximum pipe length of 100ft. between the hot water source and the fixtures.  A proposal to limit the length to 75 ft. was opposed by ASA and the ICC Government Officials supported ASAs position.
• Water Efficient Showerheads – ASA joined with PMI and the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) in opposing the ICC TC decision to accept a proposal to reduce the maximum flow rate for showerheads from 2.5 gpm down to 2.0 gpm.  Our position was supported by the ICC Government Official members.

International Building Code (IBC)

Grab Bars and Stanchions – ASA opposed a proposal to require grab bars and stanchions to be installed on all bathtub and shower installations. The ICC TC supported ASA’s position and the ICC Govnernment Officials supported the TC decision.

International Fire Code (IFC)

Compliance for Existing Buildings – The NAHB and the Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA) submitted a proposal that would require the development of a corrective action plan that would be developed by the owner and approved by the Fire Official. Currently, the IFC has no requirement of the Fire Official to work with the owner in developing a reasonable compliance time line. The proposal was not accepted. Although ASA was not involved in the proposal, I discussed the proposal with NAHB and BOMA as potentially being of interest to ASA members that own buildings. This proposal will be resubmitted and ASA plans to join NAHB and BOMA in being a part of the new proposal.

The next step in the process will be for Government Officials not able to attend the meeting will be offered an opportunity to vote on the various proposals electronically. It is not anticipated that the additional voting will have an impact on those issues where ASA took a position. 

As always, those that might have questions concerning the outcomes of the ICC Hearing or would like to simply discuss further are welcome to reach out to me directly at jkendzel@asa.net