There are two types of code opinions: staff opinions and
committee interpretations. It is the goal of the International
Code Council to continue the service of providing code opinions
as our legacy members have become accustomed and our new members
will come to know.
Staff Opinions
Staff opinions are the opinions of the staff and do not represent
the official position of the International Code Council, nor
do they represent the views of any enforcing agency. The enforcing
agency is the only agency that has the authority to render
interpretations of the code.
Staff code opinions may be either verbal or written.
When requesting a staff code opinion you must include
your ICC membership number.
Members may also request an online
code opinion. When requesting an online code opinion, members must log in
with their ICC membership number and include the following:
Contact Name
Mailing Address
Telephone Number
E-mail Address
Specific Code
Code Publication Year
Applicable Code Section
When requesting a verbal code opinion, you must include
your ICC membership number. Verbal code opinions are available
from the ICC Technical Staff by calling 1-888-ICC-SAFE (1-888-422-7233)
between the hours of 7:30 a.m. and 6:30 p.m. CST.
When requesting a written code opinion, you must include
the following:
Name and Title
Company Name
Jurisdiction Affiliation (as applicable)
ICC Membership Number
Mailing Address
Telephone Number
Specific Code
Code Publication Year
Applicable Code Section
Committee Interpretations
Committee Interpretations are intended to provide technical
support and clarification of code text for adopting jurisdictions,
design professionals, and members of the construction industry.
Committee Interpretations are processed in accordance with
ICC Policy CP #11,
Committee Interpretations on International Code Provisions.
Committee Interpretations approved by the Interpretation Committee
represents the official position of the International Code
Council; however, the final interpretation is the responsibility
of the code official having jurisdiction.
Any ICC MEMBER may submit a request for a Committee Interpretation.
Requests for Committee Interpretations must be submitted
in writing.
Questions must be written such that they can be answered
"yes" or "no."
Questions requiring an "essay" type answer
will not be considered, or will be returned to the partitioner
to be rewritten.
Each question must address a specific code section. Questions
addressing multiple code sections will be processed as a
separate interpretation for each code section.
Each request may contain multiple questions regarding
a single specific code section.
All request must contain the following information:
Petitioner
ICC Membership Number
Name and Title
Company Name; or
Jurisdictional Affiliation (as applicable)
Mailing Address
Telephone Number
Fax Number
E-mail Address
Question
Specific ICC code (i.e. Building Code, Fire Code,
etc.)
Code Publication Year
Applicable Code Section
Questions for Interpretation
Support Documentation as deemed necessary.
Committee Interpretation request must be submitted to:
Roddy Barrett, AIA
Senior Staff Architect
International Code Council
Birmingham District Office
900 Montclair Road
Birmingham, AL 35213-1206 USA
Tel: 1-888-ICC-SAFE, ext. 5240; Fax: (205) 592-7001
