HUD issued a Report
of HUD Review of the Fair Housing Accessibility Requirements in
the 2006 International Building Code, published by the International
Code Council (ICC). In addition to appearing on HUD's website, this
report was published in the Federal Register on July 18, 2007.
The ICC requested that we review the accessibility provisions
of the 2006 IBC to determine if the provisions are consistent with
the accessibility requirements of the Fair
Housing Act (the Act), the regulations
implementing the Act, and the Fair
Housing Accessibility Guidelines so that the 2006 IBC could
be recognized by the Department as a safe harbor for compliance
with the law. Because the 2006 IBC references the 2003 edition of
the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) A117.1 standard,
HUD also reviewed this standard.
HUD's report explains that during its review of the 2006 IBC, HUD
noted text missing from one section of Chapter 11, and after contacting
ICC, learned that ICC published an erratum on its website on January
31, 2007. HUD's report alerts users of the code about the need to
obtain the January 31, 2007 erratum. HUD's report indicates that
its concerns with two sections in the 2003 edition of the IBC were
addressed, and explains how they were addressed. The report also
indicates that in response to a request from ICC, HUD provided ICC
with commentary to aid code officials in properly interpreting one
section of the code to ensure consistency with HUD's Fair Housing
Accessibility Guidelines. The report includes this commentary.
HUD's report states that it has assessed the provisions of the
2006 International Building Code, as corrected by the January 31,
2007 erratum, that relate to facilities covered by the Act, and
determined that those provisions, when interpreted in accordance
with relevant 2006 IBC commentary, are consistent with the Act,
HUD's regulations, and the Fair Housing Accessibility Guidelines.
The report outlines HUD's policy with respect to all of the safe
harbors currently recognized by HUD.
Having a more recent edition of the IBC recognized by HUD as a
safe harbor will ensure that covered dwelling units will be built
with the accessible features required by the Act. HUD's report is
intended to provide technical assistance to ICC and other interested
parties. We are not issuing any new technical requirements by way
of this report, nor is this report an endorsement of a model building
code. HUD's report does not affect any State or local government
laws that require dwellings to be designed and constructed in a
manner that affords persons with disabilities greater access than
is required by the Fair Housing Act.
Questions regarding this final report should be directed to:
Ms. Cheryl Kent Special
Advisor for Disability Policy, Office of Fair Housing and Equal
Opportunity, Office of Enforcement, 451 Seventh Street, SW, Room
5240, Washington, DC 20410-0500, telephone (202)708-2333, Ext. 7058.
(This telephone number is not toll free.) Hearing or speech-impaired
persons may access this number via TTY by calling the Federal Information
Relay Service at (800) 877-8339.
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