Section 7210.108 - Review of updated sections and adoption of updated sections into Uniform Construction Code.(a) Code review process.-- (1)(i) Except as specifically provided in this act with respect:(A) to the 2015 changes to the Uniform Construction Code adopted by the council; and(B) to the procedure outlined in subparagraph (iii), the council shall commence its review of the updated sections 21 months following the publication of a new edition of the ICC codes in accordance with paragraph (3). Notwithstanding any other provision of this act to the contrary, the council shall initiate a new review of the updated sections contained in the 2015 edition of the ICC codes within 30 days of the effective date of this section, and this review shall be referred to as the 2015 Code Review. The decisions by the council with respect to the 2015 edition of the ICC codes previously provided to the department on May 29, 2015, and the regulations promulgated by the department as a result, shall remain in full force and effect until September 30, 2018. As of October 1, 2018, the decisions of the council as a result of the 2015 Code Review and the regulations promulgated by the department as a result, shall supersede any previous inconsistent council decisions or departmental regulations.(ii) The 2015 code review shall be conducted in accordance with provisions of this act, except that: (A) the public comment period under paragraph (3)(i) shall be 30 days;(B) notwithstanding the requirements under paragraph (3)(viii), the council shall only be required to conduct one public hearing which shall be held within 30 days after the end of the public comment period and shall be held in Harrisburg;(C) the council shall not be required to establish technical subcommittees as required by section 107(m) and may establish a committee composition based on past practices of the council provided that the committees shall follow the process as specified under this act to the furthest extent practicable; and(D) the council may rely on the technical analysis of the 2015 edition of the triennial codes performed by the council during the council's previous review.(iii) The council shall also review, in accordance with the procedures outlined in this act, any section of the collective codes that do not otherwise constitute updated sections but only if two-thirds of the council membership so determine. The sections selected for review shall be referred to as "additional sections." The additional sections shall be treated for purposes of review and approval or disapproval by the council as updated sections. The selection of additional sections shall occur prior to commencement of the review process.(2) Each updated section subject to review under paragraph (3)(v) shall be examined applying all of the following criteria: (i) The impact that the section may have upon the health, safety and welfare of the public.(ii) The economic and financial impact of the section , including impact on the end consumer.(iii) The technical feasibility of the section.(3) The council shall review the updated sections as follows:(i) A 120-day period to receive comments from council members and the general public regarding the updated sections shall commence 30 days following the start of the council's review pursuant to paragraph (1). The public comment period shall be announced in the Pennsylvania Bulletin and on the department's publicly accessible Internet website or, in the absence of an Internet website, in such other manner as the secretary determines will provide substantially similar public notice.(ii) All public comments shall be submitted on a form created by the council. Each comment shall relate to a single updated section. The comment shall, at a minimum, specify the updated section to which the comment relates, state whether the updated section should be adopted, rejected or modified, and specify the rationale for the recommended action based on the criteria set forth in paragraph (2). A proposed modification shall meet or exceed the standards of the section in effect or being reviewed and the proposed modification shall be within the standards under review.(iii) All public comments submitted in accordance with subparagraph (ii) shall be provided to all council members, posted on the department's publicly accessible Internet website or, in the absence of an Internet website, in such other manner as the secretary determines will provide substantially similar public notice. All public comments submitted in accordance with subparagraph (ii) shall be reviewed individually by a technical advisory committee.(iv) After the expiration of the public comment period, the chair shall assign each updated section, regardless of whether a public comment has been received, to the technical advisory committee for the code that contains the updated section.(v) The technical advisory committee shall review all of the updated sections it has been assigned as provided in this section. The technical advisory committee may also review any related updated section, any existing section or any related collective code section as needed to ensure consistency and effectiveness of the Uniform Construction Code. Even if an updated section has not received a public comment in accordance with subparagraph (ii), a technical advisory committee member may select one or more of the updated sections assigned to the technical advisory committee for individual consideration by the council pursuant to subparagraph (ix)(b).(vi) For each updated section that: (A) receives a comment recommending modification or rejection in accordance with subparagraph (ii); or(B) a member of the technical advisory committee to which it has been assigned has separately selected for individual review by the council; the technical advisory committee shall submit to the chair of the council a recommendation that the section and any related section identified in subparagraph (v) be adopted, rejected or modified. The technical advisory committee shall submit the rationale for its recommendations. Notwithstanding any other provision of this subparagraph, updated sections that do not receive a comment recommending modification or rejection in accordance with subparagraph (ii) and that a member of the technical advisory committee has not separately selected for individual review by the council shall be noted in the report as unopposed.(vii) The technical advisory committee's recommendations shall be posted on the department's publicly accessible Internet website or, in the absence of an Internet website, in such other manner as the secretary determines will provide substantially similar public notice. The technical advisory committee's recommendations shall be posted at least 10 business days prior to holding the first hearing pursuant to this section.(viii) After submission of all recommendations of the technical advisory committees, the council shall hold at least three public hearings. One of the public hearings shall be held in Harrisburg, one shall be held in the eastern region of this Commonwealth and one shall be held in the western region of this Commonwealth.(ix) Upon completion of the hearings, the council shall hold one or more official meetings of the council to decide whether to adopt, reject or modify the updated sections and any related section identified in subparagraph (v). The following shall apply: (A) The council shall consider and vote on the unopposed sections as a group. Prior to a vote on the unopposed sections as a group, the council shall first consider any motion made by a council member to exclude a section from the unopposed group. A motion to exclude shall only be in order if it is supported by written explanation, made available to the council, describing new information not considered by the technical advisory committees and the underlying rationale for the motion. If the motion is supported by a two-thirds majority of the council membership, that section shall be removed from the unopposed group. Unopposed sections that remain as part of the group, after consideration of motions to exclude sections, shall be adopted by a majority vote of the council members. If the unopposed sections fail to be adopted by a majority vote, the council shall conduct a subsequent vote to reject the unopposed sections by a two-thirds majority vote of the council members. If the council fails to reject the unopposed sections by a two-thirds majority vote, the unopposed sections shall be adopted. All unopposed sections that are rejected as a group or successfully excluded from the group shall be subject to the procedure specified in clause (B).(B) Except for the unopposed sections, a two-thirds majority of the council members is required for adoption or modification of the updated sections. The council may vote on the updated sections individually or in groups. A modification shall meet or exceed the standards of the section in effect or being reviewed and shall be within the standards under review.(b)Submission of report.--With the exception of the council's review of the 2015 ICC codes, the council shall submit a report to the secretary within the 24-month period following the commencement of the review process by the council with sections of the updated codes and additional codes that are specified for adoption or modification. The sections of the codes that are specified for adoption or modification shall be separately designated in the report. For the council's review of the 2015 ICC codes only, the council shall submit a report to the secretary on or before May 1, 2018.Added by P.L. TBD 2017 No. 36, § 3, eff. 10/25/2017.