August 1, 2006
Dear Governor, Mayor, County Official or Information Technology Officer:
This is the fourth in a series of update CD-ROM reports from the Alliance for Building Regulatory Reform in the Digital Age, a public-private partnership. This report covers actions that are being taken and tools that are available to you and your community to enhance both public safety and economic competitiveness through the effective and efficient administration of building codes and information technology.
Hurricanes Katrina, Rita and Wilma demonstrated the importance to state and local governments of having in place disaster resilience plans that include building codes and effective and efficient codes enforcement programs to protect communities and promote their rapid recovery from such events.
In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, 38 of the members of the Alliance, including the National Governors Association, National Association of Counties and the U.S. Conference of Mayors, restructured our initiative and expanded the scope of work of the AllianceÕs streamlining efforts to focus on actions that can be taken to enhance disaster preparedness, response and recovery within communities.
Our expanded scope now includes streamlining both the zoning and building regulatory processes through the effective use of information technology and brings new partners to the project, including the Urban Land Institute, Habitat for Humanity International and members from private sector firms as well as colleges and universities. Our project is also in the process of changing its name to the National Partnership to Streamline Government.
This CD-ROM report updates you on our activities, provides you and your staff with new tools and resources to enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of your building codes administration and enforcement programs and links to other national partner streamlining materials that may be of assistance to you.
Included within this CD-ROM are:
Model Procurement Requirements
Elected Officials Guide to Effective
and Efficient Building Regulatory Processes Through the Use of Information
Technology -
Guide (PDF low res 2MB) or
Guide (PDF high res 22MB)
Draft Agenda for National Streamlining Conference – late fall/winter 2006
Survey Results:
Engineering News Record Viewpoint written by Robert Wible
Links to other streamlining information: NIBS, HUD USER, NAHB, Alliance I.T. Committee, FIATECH, and other partners
Link to new National Partnership website: www.natlpartnerstreamline.org
Our past CD-ROM reports to you and your colleagues have been funded through contributions by Alliance partners, including the White House Office of Science and Technology PolicyÕs Subcommittee on Construction and Building, the National Institute of Standards and Technology, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and U.S. Department of Energy. This yearÕs report has been funded by National Partner and member of our Information Technology Industry Advisory Committee, Hansen Information Technologies.
As the Secretary to the Alliance/Partnership since its founding in 2001, it has been a distinct honor to provide administrative support to this national initiative. I hope that your administration will take advantage of our work products and find them useful tools in your efforts to keep your community safe, disaster resilient and economically competitive.
Should you have any questions concerning this report or the activities of the Alliance/National Partnership, please contact me at rcwible@comcast.net or visit our new website at www.natlpartnerstreamline.org.
Sincerely,
Robert C. Wible Director, Alliance for Building Regulatory Reform in the Digital Age and the National Partnership to Streamline Government |
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