NEWS RELEASE

To Strengthen Services to State Government and Members,
NCSBCS Transfers Housing and Building Technology Division
to Institute for Building Technology and Safety

Herndon, Virginia – August 9, 2002. To strengthen both the technical support services to federal, state, and local governments and the public policy activities of NCSBCS, on July 31, 2002, the National Conference of States on Building Codes and Standards, Inc. concluded the transfer of its Housing and Building Technology Division to the Institute for Building Technology and Safety (IBTS – the Institute). The action moves to the Institute staff, professional experience, and contracts performed by the NCSBCS HBT Division. This includes all NCSBCS contracts and subcontracts in the Federal Manufactured Housing Construction and Safety Standards program and support to the Federal Emergency Management Agency in disaster assessment. A novation proposal to the federal government to approve the transfer of these and other federal contracts and grants is now pending with the U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

The Institute is a 501c(3) organization founded in 1997 (to lessen the burdens of government) by NCSBCS, the National Governors Association (NGA), and the Council of State Governments (CSG).

NCSBCS President Robert Unthank, in announcing this July 31 action noted: "This action by the NCSBCS and IBTS boards of directors marks the fulfillment of a long-term objective of the Conference. Founded by the nation’s governors in l967, NCSBCS was formed as the national forum for the states to meet and frame public policy relative to the building codes and public safety responsibilities of our nation’s governors. Over the years, NCSBCS acquired professional expertise and contracts to assist federal agencies in the execution of regulatory oversight programs.

"NCSBCS, together with National Governors Association and Council of State Governments, believe that such oversight efforts can best be carried out in a new separate 501c(3) corporation controlled jointly by state and local government. This action frees NCSBCS to concentrate its resources on public policy issues and membership services to the public and private sector."

NCSBCS Executive Director Robert Wible noted: "NCSBCS is extremely proud of its fine track record of providing, through its HBT Division, quality monitoring and oversight and other technical services to the federal government. We believe that the Institute, which began to provide technical services last year, will give federal, state, and local governments an ideal framework for continuing to receive such important public safety support. Moving forward, NCSBCS will be able to focus all of its efforts on better serving the public policy interest of state and local governments and our partners in the private sector. We are particularly proud of our ongoing membership services, our work on homeland security issues, and our role as secretariat to the: National Alliance for Building Regulatory Reform in the Digital Age, the Industrialized Building Commission (an Interstate Compact), and the Association of Major City/County Building Officials (AMCBO)."

A briefing on NCSBCS’ operational structure will be held during the October 20-22, 2002, joint NCSBCS/AMCBO Annual Conference being held in Louisville, KY. This program will include the 2nd Annual National Forum on Building Smarter in the Digital Age and two sessions on homeland security.  Click here for details on the upcoming annual conference.

For more information on the Institute, visit www.ibts.org.

 

NCSBCS was founded by the nation’s governors in 1967 to promote the development of an efficient, cooperative system of building regulations to ensure the health, safety and welfare of the public within the built environment. NCSBCS provides technical support to the National Governors Association under a 21-year-old executive branch agreement. NCSBCS provides secretariat service to the National Alliance through inkind contributions from Alliance members and a grant from the National Institute of Standards and Technology.