Boston - IAPMO successfully joined nearly 200 union plumbers, contractors, and other industry leaders at the Massachusetts State House last month to advocate before state legislators for the protection of the state’s plumbing code, partnering on green energy and other key safety and regulatory issues.
IAPMO was well represented by Peter Kelly, director of Field Services; Hugh Kelleher, former executive director of the Greater Boston Plumbing Contractors Association; Mike Morris, partner at Tremont Strategies Group; Peter DeFreitas, director of New England Training and Education; and Jim Scarborough, director of Government Relations. Representatives from UA Locals 12, 51, 4 and 104, including Local 12’s entire class of apprentices, also participated.
After opening remarks by Kelly, UA New England International Representative Harry Brett and MAPHCC’s Peter Leydon addressed the group. Participants then dispersed throughout the Capitol to conduct literature drops in every legislative office and visit the offices of their own state senators and representatives. Among the group’s objectives were:
Despite universal support from the Massachusetts plumbing industry for the commonwealth’s homegrown plumbing code, which has protected the health and safety of Bay Staters for decades, an out-of-state organization has sought to weaken and replace the code with its own less effective code.
“It’s great to see representatives from across the plumbing industry come together to support these issues,” Kelly said. The group met with representatives from the Division of Occupational Licensure and Rep. Tackey Chan (D-2nd Norfolk), the latter stressing how important it is for people to share with legislators their thoughts about issues if they want them to make better informed votes on those issues.
IAPMO®, publisher of the Uniform Plumbing Code® (UPC) and Uniform Mechanical Code® (UMC), is calling for formal code proposals toward the development of the 2030 editions of these American National Standard designated model codes. All proposals recommending new text, revised text, or the deletion of text must be written in legislative format and clearly state the reason behind the recommendation.
The Oklahoma Uniform Building Code Commission (OUBCC) has unanimously approved the adoption of IAPMO’s Uniform Plumbing Code (UPC®) Appendix M — the Water Demand Calculator® — into Chapter 6 of the state’s adopted International Plumbing Code as an alternative methodology for sizing water supply piping in single- and multifamily buildings.
IAPMO® applauds the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR) for its adoption of the 2024 Uniform Mechanical Code (UMC®) for applications regulated under the state's Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Contractors program. The updated code is scheduled to become effective Sept. 1.