On September 23, the International Code Council (ICC) Board released its decision on two of
APGA’s joint appeals with the American Gas Association (AGA) regarding provisions in the 2021 International Energy Conservation Code (IECC), which we argued would be preempted by federal appliance efficiency laws: RE107-19 (banning pilot lights on certain gas appliances) and RE126-19 (setting efficiency ratings for certain gas-fired water heaters). While the APGA/AGA appeals were denied, the ICC Board acted favorably by determining that neither provision should be included in the 2021 ICC codes.
Notably, the ICC Board voted to do the following: support the denial of the appeals; not include the approved language from RE107-19 and RE126-19 in the 2021 IECC or International Residential Code (IRC); and, refer the issue of preemption generally for consideration to the Board Committee on the Long-Term Code Development Process, also known as the Blue Ribbon Committee.
The ICC Board found no violation of the Code Council’s processes or procedures, which is why they ultimately decided to deny the appeals. However, the Board also determined that “including potentially preempted provisions in the I-Codes is inconsistent with the spirit, intent and mission of the Code Council,” noting that “the codes explicitly state that they do not nullify any provisions of local, state or federal law.”
The Appeals Board has yet to release its recommendations on APGA/AGA’s scope/intent appeals that were heard on September 3, but the ICC Board is scheduled to meet on October 5 to consider the appeals. The Appeals Board’s recommendations are expected to be released at least 10 days prior to that meeting. APGA engaged in these appeals because members would be directly and materially affected by state or local adoption of the requirements of these proposals, as the proposals would disadvantage the competitiveness of natural gas direct use applications.
APGA staff will continue to keep members aware of any updates on the appeals process.
For questions on this article or APGA’s engagement with ICC, please contact Renée Lani of APGA staff by phone at 202-464-0836 or by email at
rlani@apga.org.