Page 18 - Builder Brief November 2025 Issue

B U I L D I N G C O D E S
NAHB REQUESTS MEMBER FEEDBACK ON ICC
REVIEW OF INTERNATIONAL RESIDENTIAL CODE
The International Code Council (ICC) has
announced it will begin a holistic review of the
International Residential Code (IRC), the national
model construction code for one- and two-family
dwellings that ICC updates every three years.
As rising construction costs continue to
exacerbate this nation’s housing affordability crisis,
ICC is establishing a Board IRC Review Committee
(BIRC) to identify potential changes that can
reduce construction costs and simplify the
code without weakening its existing life safety
requirements.
The review will be led by an academic research
team consisting of three U.S. universities, which will
be assisted by an Advisory Committee of building
code experts that will include participation by
NAHB. The research team has issued a call for
public input to guide the research team’s work.
This input will help identify provisions in the IRC to improve
through future ICC code development cycles. The BIRC
webpage hosts a public comment portal that will be open
through Nov. 28, 2025.
NAHB members are encouraged to provide their feedback
by responding to this brief survey by Friday, Nov. 14. Your
input will help inform the comments that NAHB will submit
to ICC to improve future editions of the IRC.
Do You Have Questions or Need More Time?
Please contact Gary Ehrlich, NAHB director of construction
codes and standards, at gehrlich@nahb.org if you have any
questions or need additional time to complete the survey.
Please include the phrase “IRC Review Feedback” in the
subject line of your email
To help NAHB members and HBAs address rising
construction costs when their states and local jurisdictions
consider building code updates, NAHB has developed a
2024 I-Codes Adoption Kit at www.nahb.org/advocacy/
top-priorities/building-codes/code-adoption-kits/2024-
i-codes-adoption-kit. The kit offers a number of resources
including a list of significant changes in the 2024 IRC, a
cost impact study for adoption of the 2024 IRC, and
recommended amendments for states and jurisdictions
considering adopting the 2024 IRC.
NAHB members are
encouraged to provide
their feedback by
responding to this brief
survey by
November 14th
18 NOVEMBER 2025 | GREATER SAN ANTONIO BUILDERS ASSOCIATION