YOU MUST ACT IMMEDIATELY TO
DEFEND HOME FIRE SPRINKLERS
DEADLINE - FRIDAY, MARCH 18TH
Once again, opponents of home fire sprinklers are attacking the International Residential Code (IRC). Several proposals have been submitted to the IRC for the 2016 code cycle that would diminish or eliminate the requirement for all new homes to have residential fire sprinklers. This requirement has now been included in three editions of the IRC (2009, 2012 and 2015), and well over 100,000 families now live in sprinklered homes because of it. To protect the public and firefighters, we must once again fight to support sprinklers, and with ICC’s latest rules, you can cast your votes online without having to attend the code hearings.
TAKE ACTION TODAY
1) REGISTER YOUR JURISDICTION AS AN ICC VOTING GOVERNMENTAL MEMBER. If your jurisdiction/fire department is or has been an ICC member, verify that the membership has been renewed and is current at www.iccsafe.org. If your jurisdiction/department has not previously been an ICC member, please join today at http://shop.iccsafe.org/governmental-member.html. Renewals and new member applications must be submitted no later than Friday, March 18th to be eligible for voting in the 2016 code cycle. Voting governmental member organizations are allocated votes based on population served as follows:
· Less than 50,000 population served 4 votes
· 50,001-150,000 population served 8 votes
· More than 150,000 population served 12 votes
ICC allows multiple organizations serving the same jurisdiction to have separate memberships, each with its own voting allowance, so fire departments can have a separate membership even if the jurisdiction’s building department is an ICC member.
2) DESIGNATE YOUR VOTING REPRESENTATIVES. Each year, voting governmental member organizations are required to designate authorized voters (each vote must be assigned to an individual employee, or you lose it). Even if you aren’t changing assignments from previous years, you must renew appointments prior to March 18th, or you will lose your votes for the upcoming hearing. To renew, the individual responsible for the organization’s membership and voting appointments must go to:
http://www.iccsafe.org/news-announcements/update-your-2016-voter-representative-information/
3) PARTICIPATE IN ONLINE VOTING. Unlike previous code cycles, it is no longer necessary to attend code hearings in person to vote. ICC now conducts an online voting process that allows members to vote during a 2-week period following each hearing. However, steps 1 and 2 above must be completed to have voting eligibility.
WHAT’S AT STAKE?
The future of residential fire safety in America will hinge on winning the upcoming votes. Home fire sprinklers represent our best chance of striking at the heart of America's fire problem. We won the home fire sprinkler issue 8 years ago, culminating a 30-year effort, and if that action is reversed in 2016, progress could be set back for decades.
More Information: (202) 470-6447
Email: Admin@IRCFireSprinkler.org
Web: www.IRCFireSprinkler.org