How does one become a voting member of the International Code Council?
Answer: Only Governmental Member Representatives & Honorary Members have the right to vote in the Online Governmental Consensus Vote (OGCV).
How are code development committee members selected?
Answer: All Code Development Committees shall be appointed by the ICC Board.
The answer to both of these questions can be found in the International Code Council Bylaws & Council Policies.
ICC voting members
Under Article II Membership, Section 2.1 Categories of Membership states that, “A Governmental Member shall be a governmental unit, department or agency engaged in the administration, formulation, implementation or enforcement of laws, ordinances, rules or regulations relating to public health, safety and welfare.” Furthermore, in Section 2.1.1.1 Governmental Member Voting Representatives, “…shall be designated in writing by the Governmental Member and shall be employees or officials of the Governmental Member or departments of the Governmental Member provided that each of the designated voting representatives shall be an employee or a public official actively engaged either full or part time, in the administration, formulation, implementation or enforcement of laws, ordinances, rules or regulations related to public health, safety and welfare”. Applications for Governmental Membership must be received by the ICC at least 30 days prior to the Committee Action Hearing in order for its designated representatives to be eligible to vote at the Public Comment Hearing or Online Governmental Consensus Vote.
The number of ICC representatives allowed per Governmental Member is based upon population:
Population Dues Amount Number of Representatives
1- 50,000 $135.00 / year (4) Four
50,001 – 150,000 $240.00 / year (8) Eight
Over 150,000 $370.00 / year (12) Twelve
The key to our having an impact as an industry to support the Governmental Members and educate them on how important it is to have all of the membership representatives they are allotted filled with names. As we communicate the importance of representation to the Governmental Members we also share our industry agenda and ask for their support in keeping the built environment sustainable and resilient by focusing on cement and concrete products.
One final hurdle exists for all governmental members. In order to vote in the code development process during the Online Governmental Consensus Vote (third and final step of the process) they must first be validated. Validation is not complicated the member only needs to go to the ICC website at www.iccsafe.org and either search for Voter Validation or click on the Electronic Voter Validation tab. The member then confirms name, contact information and which municipality they are affiliated with. Code officials do change jobs or move from one city or town to another occasionally and this keeps the process clean. The problem is that many code officials / Governmental Members do not go through this simple validation process and then they are not eligible to vote in the OGCV. Therefore, PCA working through the ICC State & Regional Chapters to get members validated so they can support the PCA positions.
Honorary Members
According to ICC Bylaws Article II, Section 2.1.2, “Any individual who has rendered outstanding service to the Council, and whose name shall be proposed by the Board of Directors and confirmed by a majority vote of the Governmental Member Representatives at the Annual Business Meeting” can attain status of Honorary Members of the International Code Council. Steve Skalko, former PCA employee, received Honorary Member status last year.
In conclusion, it is important to reiterate that according to the ICC Bylaws, Article III, “Only Governmental Member Representatives & Honorary Members shall have the right to vote on any matter under the Bylaws and International Code Council Policies.”
Code Development Committee Members
Committee members are appointed based upon the International Code Council Policy CP#28-05 (Revised most recently 12/08/2017). The purpose of CP#28 is to prescribe the rules and procedures utilized in the development and maintenance of the family of International Codes. Under Section 5.2 Committee, “The Codes & Standards Council reviews all applications and make committee appointment recommendations to the ICC Board of Directors. All Code Development Committees shall be appointed by the ICC Board. While the committee may consist of representatives from multiple interests to include industry representatives, architects and engineers the committee composition is governed by CP#28 Section 5.2.4 which states, “A minimum of thirty-three and one-third percent (33.3%) of the committee shall be regulators”. Regulators are Governmental Members as described previously. Prior to the code development cycle beginning ICC staff post a “Call for Committee Members” announcement on the ICC Website. There is a tab to download and application and the application deadline is also given.