OPINION: Wisconsin’s tradition of building safety is alive and well

I write today about a topic few think about on a daily basis — the statutory basis of Wisconsin’s building codes. Although this may seem like minutia, without a solid statutory foundation, Wisconsin’s building codes would crumble just as your home would fall if it had no foundation. As the former director of program development in the Safety and Buildings Division of the Wisconsin Department of Commerce, I have over 25 years of experience with building codes and their statutory basis.

Unfortunately, the statutory basis for the Wisconsin Commercial Building Code — as well as dozens of other state agency codes — was challenged and questioned over the last four years. As a result, code requirements for fire sprinklers in multifamily dwellings of three to 19 units have not been enforced in recent years — allowing such buildings to be constructed without the lifesaving and property-protecting benefits of fire sprinklers.
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