The White House is launching the New Building Codes Initiative, a plan designed to assist city, state, and tribal governments in understanding and adopting the most up-to-date building codes and standards. Under the terms of the project, the White House outlines several means to support these bodies in making buildings more energy-efficient and resilient to significant climate events such as storms and extreme heat/cold. These include:
- A comprehensive review of federal funding and how it is used to finance building projects to confirm that federally funded projects are being done to the most up-to-date standard.
- Utilize over $225 million in Bipartisan Infrastructure Law funding to support the adoption of updated building codes.
- Promote best practices when developing standards, especially those utilized in upcoming federal construction projects.
According to the White House, communities that have adopted modern building codes have saved $1.6 billion a year.
