LEESBURG, VA. – American Wood Council's (AWC) Vice President of Codes & Regulations Kenneth Bland, P.E., issued the following statement regarding the approval of the 14 tall mass timber code change proposals during the International Code Council (ICC) public comment hearings today in Richmond, Va. The proposals will now be subject to ICC’s online voting, which is scheduled to begin in November. The final outcome of the tall mass timber code change proposals is expected in December.

WASHINGTON – American Wood Council (AWC) President and CEO Robert Glowinski issued the following statement in response to Vicki Christiansen’s appointment as the 19th Chief of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Forest Service. Christiansen has been serving as the Interim Chief since March.

WASHINGTON – American Wood Council (AWC) President and CEO Robert Glowinski issued the following statement in response to James (Jim) Hubbard’s confirmation as Under Secretary of Agriculture for Natural Resources and Environment at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). Hubbard worked for the Colorado Forest Service for 35 years and served as the state’s chief forester for the last 20 years.

LEESBURG, VA. – Oregon has become the first state to approve the use of science-based building code requirements for tall mass timber buildings under their statewide alternate method (SAM). The SAM program is unique to Oregon, allowing early technical consideration and approval on a statewide basis.

LEESBURG, VA. – The American Wood Council (AWC) 2018 Wood Design Package is now available for purchase in printed format. The document set contains the 2018 National Design Specification® (NDS®) for Wood Construction, with Commentary and 2018 Supplement: Design Values for Wood Construction, and the 2015 Special Design Provisions for Wind and Seismic (SDPWS) with Commentary.

WASHINGTON – The American Wood Council and American Forest & Paper Association issued the following statement regarding the House Energy and Commerce Environment Subcommittee markup of H.R. 3128. The bill, sponsored by Rep. Morgan Griffith (R-VA), seeks to clarify which types of facility upgrades require an owner to obtain a New Source Review (NSR) permit.

LEESBURG, VA. – The American Wood Council (AWC) and WoodWorks have released the Windows version of a free app to calculate maximum allowable heights and areas for buildings of various occupancy classifications and types of construction. The Heights & Areas Calculator is based on the provisions in the 2015 and earlier editions of the International Building Code (IBC).

The American Wood Council, the National Alliance of Forest Owners and the Southeastern Lumber Manufacturers Association responded in a joint statement to the introduction of the Senate Agriculture Committee’s Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018, otherwise known as the farm bill.