Later this month, advocates for and against mandating fire sprinklers in new home construction will gather in Baltimore, Md. for an important vote.
The International Code Council will consider proposals to remove language from the International Residential Code requiring fire sprinklers in new construction come 2011 during its annual meeting at the Hilton Baltimore Convention Center.
The hearings are expected to take place during Oct. 28-29 during the ICC's annual hearing that is part of the ICC's annual conference that begins Oct. 24 and ends Nov. 11.
Last year, IRC Proposal RB64-07/08, passed on Sept. 21, 2008 at the ICC's conference in Minneapolis. The resolution garnered 72 percent in favor versus 26 percent against out of a voting pool of close to two thousand people.
The resolution -- if upheld -- will require the installation of fire sprinklers in single family homes beginning Jan. 1, 2011. The IRC is the model code governing residential construction in 46 states plus the District of Columbia.
A month after the vote passed, the National Association of Home Builders -- the main opponent of the resolution -- filed an appeal, contending that the ICC failed to provide a balance of interest in voting. On Dec. 11, 2008, the council's appeals board unanimously found no wrong doing in the vote and the resolution stood.
A new resolution by the National Association of Home Builders aims to rescind the mandate on fire sprinkler systems.
Anyone can take part in the vote in Baltimore by becoming an ICC member through the council's Web site. Those interested must become a member before Oct. 14 in order to be eligible to vote at the hearings.
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