The City Council met on Sept. 9, 2002, to review proposed amendments to the San Diego Municipal Code and to adopt the 2001 California Construction Codes. As a part of the public hearing process, the City Council considered input and recommendations by a number of individuals, organizations and the Board of Building Appeals and Advisors.

The City Council unanimously approved the adoption of the proposed construction codes and approved the proposed Municipal Code amendments as presented. The amendments incorporate revisions due to previously submitted public comments.

The California Construction Codes are a part of Title 24 of the State Code of Regulations. The 2001 edition of the California Construction Codes will include amended versions of the 1997 edition of the Uniform Building Code published by ICBO, the 2000 edition of the Uniform Fire Code published by the Western Fire Chiefs Association, the 1999 National Electrical Code published by NFPA, as well as the 2000 editions of the Uniform Plumbing Code and Uniform Mechanical Codes published by IAPMO.

Numerous state amendments will be published to correlate the selected and unrelated codes and to update the fire protection standards referenced in the outdated 1997 UBC. No major changes are expected in the 2001 California Building Code in areas other than disabled access regulations and sprinkler requirements in multi-family and hotel buildings.

Construction permit applications submitted on or after Nov. 1, 2002, will have to comply with the new construction codes as well as approved amendments in the San Diego Municipal Code. Construction permit applications that are closed when a permit is not issued within 360 days of the initial application file date must be resubmitted as required in Section §129.0211 "Closing of Building Permit Application" of the San Diego Municipal Code. The department will determine the applicable codes based on the acceptance date of the submitted permit application and associated plans and documents. Permit applications submitted prior to the effective date of the new construction codes will be processed under the existing codes. Check the Permit Press for future updates.