AWC continues to battle efforts to ban building materials in wildland urban interface (WUI) zones through the use of data to demonstrate that a performance-based approach using widely recognized testing protocols supports the fire resistance of wood structures. AWC performed four fire tests at the Western Fire Center in Kelso, Washington, using a modified version of the ASTM E2957 test exposure. The tests resulted in key data that AWC and the industry used to address concerns raised in WUI codes and standards development activities, preventing unfair exclusion of wood products in certain WUI-designated areas.

Based on the results of these tests, AWC believes that the ASTM E2957 test method, with slight modifications, can be used to evaluate designs of the soffit hardening and intersections between the exterior wall and the soffit. As a result, AWC staff has submitted recommendations to reference ASTM E2957, with modifications, in the new ICC 605 Standard for Residential Construction in Regions with Wildfire Hazard to address conditions where the defensible space is not maintained, and the exterior wall/soffit can be exposed to direct flame impingement.

This testing directly supports AWC efforts in codes and standards development; specifically, it has supported AWC’s advocacy in the new ICC 605 standard and the new California WUI code, which is expected to be effective in 2026. Leading with data-driven results has opened doors to help AWC directly demonstrate the safety and resiliency of our industry’s products while advocating for favorable code requirements and standards. These efforts will become increasingly important as AWC looks ahead to 2025 and the increased attention paid to WUI construction following the devastating Los Angeles fires.

Recent claims in the seismic design community have suggested that the presence of gypsum wallboard (GWB) panels may diminish the performance of wood-frame buildings braced with wood structural panel (WSP) shear walls. These claims have been based on modeling by researchers using limited test data from WSP-sheathed shear wall tests and GWB wall tests that were tested separately. To respond to this, AWC funded a series of shear wall tests at Weyerhaeuser’s ISO 17025 accredited test facility in Federal Way, Washington. The tests focused on the combination of 5/8” Type X GWB-sheathed walls (attached as required for fire-resistance rated [FRR] wood-frame walls) in combination with WSP sheathed shear walls. The tests were designed to address unfounded conjecture about the safety of large wood-frame buildings and give our industry data to demonstrate the safety of wood construction.

While analysis of these latest test results is ongoing, including significant P695 modeling for seismic design, preliminary results indicate that the claims that the presence of GWB panels diminishes the seismic performance of large four and five story wood-frame buildings braced with WSP sheathed shear walls are unfounded. The results from this test program are valuable in countering these claims derived without the backing of representative data on the performance of wood frame shear wall systems.

These tests align with AWC’s continual modeling and analysis work, which includes the evaluation of four and five story wood-frame buildings supported by structural podiums and addresses a separate area of concern over possible amplification of seismic forces in this common construction archetype. AWC’s work on the wood over podium structure type is already proving to be influential. Seismic code writers are using it to simplify and propose new criteria to improve seismic performance of podium supported structures.

AWC utilized its monthly webinar offerings to highlight the significant changes to our 2024 NDS and 2024 WFCM design standards. Both standards are referenced in the 2024 International Building Code and 2024 International Residential Code and provide structural requirements for the design of wood members and connections used in construction ranging from wood-frame homes to mass timber buildings.

A post-webinar survey confirmed that 95% of attendees agreed or strongly agreed that they gained knowledge of the changes in the NDS, and 91% gained awareness of the new notching requirements that clarify limitations on permissible notches and taper cuts in structural wood products, including sawn lumber, glued laminated timber, and structural composite lumber. Over 90% of attendees similarly gained awareness of the changes to ASCE 7-22 span table changes for snow loads and wood member and connections resisting wind loads reflected in the 2024 WFCM based on revised snow loads and wind loads in ASCE 7-22.

Overall, attendees’ average responses across both presentations showed that 86% agreed or strongly agreed that AWC education allows for more design or specification of wood construction. At the same time no one disagreed or strongly disagreed with that statement. Additionally, 91% said they use AWC standards when engineered design is required for wood construction.

AWC increased its efforts to support federal affordable housing policies that address our nation’s critical shortfall in a manner that opens up new markets for wood use. We hosted an open house as part of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Innovative Housing Showcase. Mercer Mass Timber, an AWC member, along with Green Canopy NODE, a Seattle-based engineering and construction company, exhibited a model prefabricated mass timber home as part of the showcase on the National Mall.

The open house highlighted the various roles wood products can play in reducing the built environment’s carbon footprint, increasing the housing supply, and lowering the cost of housing construction. Congressional staff, along with representatives from HUD, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), the American Institute of Architects, and more, toured the display and asked questions following a short series of remarks.

Additionally, to help educate the administration about mass timber’s potential use in affordable housing, AWC’s President & CEO Jackson Morrill authored an article in HUD’s research publication, Cityscape. His article, “Mass Timber: A Sustainable Building Solution,” takes a deep dive into mass timber research and makes the case that it’s a viable climate solution. The article introduces the types of mass timber and details the research-proven benefits of the material while recognizing the recent projects in Washington and Connecticut.

Finally, AWC joined the Neighborhood Homes Coalition, a national advocacy group of over 35 organizations supporting the enactment of the Neighborhood Homes Investment Act (NHIA). NHIA would create a business tax credit for certain development costs for the acquisition, rehabilitation, or remediation of qualified real property. Supporters claim that the bill, if enacted, would produce 500,000 new starter homes nationwide, and support 861,000 jobs in construction and construction-related industries.

In many areas nationwide, the cost to build or rehab a home exceeds the price at which the home could be sold once completed. The new tax credit would help fill that “value gap” — up to 35 percent of eligible development costs for new homes — thus reducing the developer’s risk of loss and encouraging investments in new and rehabbed housing. In turn, this increased development will spur additional demand for light frame construction and our members’ products.

AWC and its members have identified the housing crisis as one of our key priorities going into 2025. In collaboration with the Neighborhood Homes Coalition, we will be working on the NHIA as well as working with congressional partners to push for an expansion of low-income housing tax credits.

AWC’s state government affairs work carried the momentum from the 2023 legislative sessions as a number of states wrapped up 2-year cycles with monumental pushes to pass policy. Staff engaged in 15 states across the country, sending 25 comment letters on various pieces of legislation, budget- funded studies, and code proposals. Additionally, AWC sent letters of support for two embodied carbon policies in Los Angeles and Boston and engaged in conversations with local government in New York City on the same topic.

Some highlights of our state-level advocacy work in 2024 include:

C A L I F O R N I A
AWC successfully advocated for an amendment to a bill in California that could have limited wood use. AB 2416 was originally designed to require the Department of Insurance to evaluate if additional provisions should be included in the Safer from Wildfires regulations, specifically through the installation or use of noncombustible construction material on the State Fire Marshal Building Materials Listing. AWC’s proactive approach led to a meeting with the Assembly member’s office to educate staff on WUI codes and to form a coalition to push back against the focus on noncombustible materials. The bill’s amendment ensured that AB2416 would not circumvent Chapter 7A of the California Building Standards Code. The bill is profiled for the 2025-2026 legislative session and continues to include our added language in the amendment. AWC staff continues to monitor and work with Assembly members in California to make sure the bill does not reintroduce provisions to limit material choice.

M A S S A C H U S E T T S
AWC engaged thoroughly in the 2024 session to successfully prevent the passage of bills that would have restricted light frame wood construction and circumvented the state’s building codes (SB 1523/HB 2321). AWC also proactively educated lawmakers on the importance of comprehensive embodied carbon reduction policies. As a result of a climate bill passing, AWC will be engaged in further embodied carbon conversations in 2025 as the newly established Intergovernmental Coordinating Council on Embodied Carbon evaluates how the state can reduce its emissions. We will continue advocacy for multi- compliance approaches and the inclusion of Whole Building Life Cycle Assessments (WBLCA) to recognize the greatest reductions in emissions.

W A S H I N G T O N
AWC’s engagement in Washington state during 2024 provided the foundation for our efforts to support embodied carbon legislation in the 2025 session. During the short session, AWC staff and our partners worked to improve language in the state’s Buy Clean and Buy Fair bill, while developing a broad coalition to support a multi-compliance approach and the inclusion of WBLCA in the 2025 session. In addition to direct legislative engagement, AWC’s state affairs staff has provided comments on an embodied carbon study funded by the state’s supplemental budget and engaged in numerous building code conversations on a separate embodied carbon proposal. These conversations are ongoing. AWC will stay engaged in all embodied carbon policy initiatives in the state and in larger discussions regarding the forest products industry through participation in the Forest Products Roundtable.

As a result of AWC’s continuous engagement with the Department of Defense (DoD) and U.S. Congress over the last few years, and as directed by the AWC supported National Defense Authorization Act language, the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) has begun a groundbreaking partnership with Composite Recycling Technology Center (CRTC) designed to pave the way for additional usage of mass timber with DoD.

“Mass timber has a lot of momentum in the Army right now,” said Dr. Pete Stynoski, research civil engineer at ERDC in a recent U.S. Army Corps press release. “This project is trying to enable wider sourcing of Class IV materials for more resilient structures in both everyday use and in contested logistics scenarios.”

The article cited both the speed of construction and the environmental benefits mass timber provides over other traditional building materials.

AWC will continue to encourage federal agencies, including the DoD, to adopt mass timber and wood construction as they look to reduce costs to the taxpayer and reduce carbon in the built environment.

AWC hosted its first-ever Climate Week NYC event alongside WoodWorks. The session, entitled Building with Wood: Nature’s Climate Solution, featured three expert panelists. The panelists shared the entire journey of wood products, with Katie Fernholz of Dovetail Partners starting at the forest and discussing the management, health, and sustainability of North American forests, followed by Alexis Feitel of KL&A Engineers and Builders, who focused on the design and construction of mass timber structures, as well as their embodied carbon benefits. Finally, Sandra Lupien, the director of the MassTimber@MSU program, closed out the panel by highlighting the specific ways policy has encouraged and hampered the use of mass timber in the U.S.

The event included over 80 in-person attendees, as well as additional online attendees. The in-person attendees included individuals representing nonprofits, Fortune 500 companies, and federal agencies, as well as a number of architects, wood product producers, and academics. Attendees were highly engaged in the Q&A session, with many staying for the networking hour and discussing specific questions with the panelists and AWC team. These discussions included positive feedback from individuals at companies such as EY and Amazon, who both expressed renewed interest in using mass timber to help reach their companies’ and their clients’ carbon neutrality goals.

AWC’s Climate Week NYC event is available to view online here.