Washington Administrative Code

Within ten days of receipt of the written findings of the internal appeals board, a local government not satisfied with the findings may appeal to an external appeals board by addressing a written notice to the director of audit. The written notice shall specify the grounds for a…

The external appeals board shall consist of three officers of local government associations, one selected by the local government at the time of its appeal, one selected by the director of audit after receipt of the notice of appeal, and the third to be selected by the other two …

The external appeals board shall review the challenged bill, together with any other pertinent material furnished by the local government and the state auditor's office. Within ten days after its selection, the external appeals board shall submit written findings and recommendati…

Within ten days after receipt of the findings and recommendation of the external appeals board, the state auditor shall issue a final written decision accepting, rejecting, or modifying the recommendation of the appeals board. The final decision shall be delivered to the local go…

Any local government which fails to follow the appeal procedures outlined in this chapter will be deemed to have waived its appeal, and shall promptly pay any bill submitted by the state auditor.[Statutory Authority: RCW 42.56.070, 43.21C.120, and 43.09.281. WSR 10-22-022, § 48-2…

The office of the state auditor will provide facilities, clerical staff, and necessary expenses for appeals boards selected pursuant to this chapter.[Statutory Authority: RCW 42.56.070, 43.21C.120, and 43.09.281. WSR 10-22-022, § 48-21-100, filed 10/22/10, effective 11/22/10.]

The Washington state building code council, hereinafter called the council, is required by chapter 266, Laws of 1988, to adopt and maintain the state building code, hereinafter referred to as the building code, as provided in chapters 19.27, 19.27A, and 70.92 RCW, and the state l…

(1) "Council" means the Washington state building code council.(2) "Emergency statewide amendment" means any proposed statewide amendment, the adoption of which is necessary immediately in order to protect life, safety or health of building occupants; preserve the structural inte…

An agency, city or county, wishing to submit local government residential amendments to the building code for council consideration, may file with the council a petition for preliminary review of the local government residential amendment, in order to solicit comments from counci…

(1) All petitions for statewide amendments to the building code must be compliant with the requirements set forth in WAC 51-04-025.(2) The council will accept and consider compliant petitions for emergency statewide amendments to the building code at any time, in accordance with …

(1) Statewide and emergency statewide amendments to the state building code shall conform to the purposes, objectives, and standards prescribed in RCW 19.27.020.Applications for proposed statewide amendments shall be complete, include a detailed economic analysis of impacts of th…

(1) All amendments to the building code, as adopted by cities and counties for implementation and enforcement in their respective jurisdictions, that apply to single and multifamily buildings as defined by RCW 19.27.015, shall be submitted to the council for approval.(2) The coun…

All proposed local government residential amendments to the state building code shall be submitted in writing to the council, on a form provided by the council, along with findings of fact as required in WAC 51-04-030 for the proposed amendment. Local government residential amend…

Any local government residential amendment, that the council determines to be appropriate for adoption by other local governments, may be designated as a preapproved local government residential amendment.A preapproved local government residential amendment may be adopted by any …

(1) When the council approves, denies or modifies a local amendment to the building code, any party with written or oral testimony to the council related to the amendment on the record may file a petition for reconsideration. The petition must be received by the Washington State …

All written communications related to council business received by council members shall be forwarded to staff for inclusion in the public record.[Statutory Authority: RCW 19.27.031 and 19.27.074. WSR 19-24-078, § 51-04-050, filed 12/2/19, effective 1/2/20. Statutory Authority: C…

RCW 19.27.031 grants the council authority to render opinions relating to the building code at the request of a local code official.For the purposes of this section, the term "code official" means the local or state official, or their designee, responsible for implementation and …

All requests for information, documentation, etc., should be submitted to:Washington State Building Code Council1500 Jefferson Avenue S.E.P.O. Box 41449Olympia, Washington 98504-1449Phone: 360-407-9255www.sbcc.wa.gov[Statutory Authority: RCW 19.27.031 and 19.27.074. WSR 19-24-078…

The purpose of these rules is to provide definitions to assist the collection of building permit fees as mandated by chapter 19.27 RCW.[Statutory Authority: RCW 19.27.074, 19.27.020, 19.27.031 and 19.27.085. WSR 14-10-067, recodified as § 51-05-100, filed 5/6/14, effective 6/6/14…

1. State Building Code fee shall mean a fee which is required to be collected by cities and counties pursuant to chapter 19.27 RCW. Funds collected shall be used exclusively to implement the provisions of chapters 19.27 and 19.27A RCW.2. Building permit shall mean a permit issued…

The purpose of this chapter shall be to ensure compliance by the state building code council (hereinafter referred to as the "council"), including its members and staff, with the provisions of chapter 42.17 RCW, and in particular with RCW 42.17.250 - 42.17.320 dealing with public…

All public records of the council as defined in WAC 51-06-030 are available for public inspection and copying at the Washington State Building Code Council, 1500 Jefferson Avenue S.E., Olympia, Washington 98504-1449, pursuant to these rules, except as otherwise provided by RCW 42…

The department of community development may charge a fee of twenty-five cents per page for providing copies of public records and for use of the office's copy equipment.[Statutory Authority: Chapters 19.27 and 34.05 RCW and 1989 c 348. WSR 90-02-108, § 51-06-070, filed 1/3/90, ef…

All requests for information, documentation, etc., should be submitted to the:Washington State Building Code Council1500 Jefferson Avenue S.E.P.O. Box 41449Olympia, Washington 98504-1449Phone: 360-407-9280Fax: 360-586-9088[Statutory Authority: RCW 19.27.074. WSR 16-01-042, § 51-0…

[Statutory Authority: RCW 19.27A.020, 19.27A.025 and chapters 19.27 and 34.05 RCW. WSR 13-04-056, § 51-11C-10000, filed 2/1/13, effective 7/1/13.]Reviser's note: The brackets and enclosed material in the text of the above section occurred in the copy filed by the agency.

C101.1 Title. This code shall be known as the Washington State Energy Code, and shall be cited as such. It is referred to herein as "this code."The 2021 edition of the Washington State Energy Code is hereby adopted. The Washington State Energy Code adopted under chapter 51-11C WA…

C101.4 Applicability. Where, in any specific case, different sections of this code specify different materials, methods of construction or other requirements, the most restrictive shall govern. Where there is a conflict between a general requirement and a specific requirement, th…

[Statutory Authority: RCW 19.27A.025, 19.27A.160, and 19.27.074. WSR 16-03-072, § 51-11C-10143, filed 1/19/16, effective 7/1/16. Statutory Authority: RCW 19.27A.025, 19.27A.045, and 19.27.074. WSR 13-20-120, § 51-11C-10143, filed 10/1/13, effective 11/1/13. Statutory Authority: R…

C101.5 Compliance.Residential buildings shall meet the provisions of WSEC—Residential Provisions. Commercial buildings shall meet the provisions of WSEC—Commercial Provisions.C101.5.1 Compliance materials. The code official shall be permitted to approve specific computer software…

C102.1 General. The provisions of this code are not intended to prevent the installation of any material, or to prohibit any design or method of construction not specifically prescribed by this code, provided that any such alternative has been approved. The code official shall ha…

C103.1 General. Construction documents and other supporting data shall be submitted in one or more sets, or in a digital format where allowed by the building official, with each application for a permit. The construction documents shall be prepared by a registered design professi…

C104.1 Fees. A permit shall not be issued until the fees prescribed in Section C104.2 have been paid, nor shall an amendment to a permit be released until the additional fee, if any, has been paid.C104.2 Schedule of permit fees. A fee for each permit shall be paid as required, in…

C105.1 General. Construction or work for which a permit is required shall be subject to inspection by the code official, his or her designated agent, or an approved agency, and such construction or work shall remain visible and able to be accessed for inspection purposes until ap…

C106.1 Approval. After the prescribed tests and inspections indicate that the work complies in all respects with this code, a notice of approval shall be issued by the code official.C106.2 Revocation. The code official is authorized to, in writing, suspend or revoke a notice of a…

C107.1 General. If a portion of this code is held to be illegal or void, such a decision shall not affect the validity of the remainder of this code.[Statutory Authority: RCW 19.27A.020, 19.27A.025, 19.27A.160 and chapters 19.27A and 19.27 RCW. WSR 22-14-091, 23-12-101, and 23-20…

C108.1 Referenced codes and standards. The codes and standards referenced in this code shall be those listed in Chapter 6, and such codes and standards shall be considered as part of the requirements of this code to the prescribed extent of each such reference and as further regu…

C109.1 Authority. Whenever the code official finds any work regulated by this code being performed in a manner either contrary to the provisions of this code or dangerous or unsafe, the code official is authorized to issue a stop work order.C109.2 Issuance. The stop work order sh…

C110.1 General. In order to hear and decide appeals of orders, decisions or determinations made by the code official relative to the application and interpretation of this code, there shall be and is hereby created a board of appeals. The code official shall be an ex officio memb…

It shall be unlawful for any person, firm, or corporation to erect or construct any building, or remodel or rehabilitate any existing building or structure in the state, or allow the same to be done, contrary to or in violation of any of the provisions of this code.[Statutory Aut…

Nothing contained in this code is intended to be nor shall be construed to create or form the basis for any liability on the part of any city or county or its officers, employees, or agents for any injury or damage resulting from the failure of a building to conform to the provis…

[Statutory Authority: RCW 19.27A.020, 19.27A.025 and chapters 19.27 and 34.05 RCW. WSR 13-04-056, § 51-11C-20000, filed 2/1/13, effective 7/1/13.]Reviser's note: The brackets and enclosed material in the text of the above section occurred in the copy filed by the agency.

C201.1 Scope. Unless stated otherwise, the following words and terms in this code shall have the meanings indicated in this chapter.C201.2 Interchangeability. Words used in the present tense include the future; words in the masculine gender include the feminine and neuter; the si…

[Statutory Authority: RCW 19.27A.020, 19.27A.025 and chapters 19.27 and 34.05 RCW. WSR 13-04-056, § 51-11C-20200, filed 2/1/13, effective 7/1/13.]

ABOVE-GRADE WALL. That portion of a wall in the building envelope that is not a below-grade wall. This includes between-floor spandrels, peripheral edges of floors, roof knee walls, dormer walls, gable end walls, walls enclosing a mansard roof and skylight shafts.ACCESS (TO). Tha…

BELOW-GRADE WALL. That portion of a wall in the building envelope that is entirely below the finish grade and in contact with the ground.BIOGAS. A mixture of hydrocarbons that is a gas at 60°F (15.5°C) and one atmosphere of pressure that is produced through the anaerobic digestio…

C-FACTOR (THERMAL CONDUCTANCE). The coefficient of heat transmission (surface to surface) through a building component or assembly, equal to the time rate of heat flow per unit area and the unit temperature difference between the warm side and cold side surfaces (Btu/h ft2 × °F) …

DATA ACQUISITION SYSTEM. An electronic system managed by the building owner to collect, tabulate and display metering information.DATA CENTER. A room or series of rooms that share data center systems whose primary function is to house equipment for the processing and storage of e…

ECONOMIZER, AIR. A duct and damper arrangement and automatic control system that allows a cooling system to supply outside air to reduce or eliminate the need for mechanical cooling during mild or cold weather.ECONOMIZER, WATER. A system where the supply air of a cooling system i…

FAN, EMBEDDED. A fan that is part of a manufactured assembly where the assembly includes functions other than air movement.FAN ARRAY. Multiple fans in parallel between two plenum sections in an air distribution system.FAN BRAKE HORSEPOWER (BHP). The horsepower delivered to the fa…

GENERAL LIGHTING. Interior lighting that provides a substantially uniform level of illumination throughout a space. General lighting shall not include lighting that provides a dissimilar level of illumination to serve a specific application or decorative feature within such area.…