IBHS ranks hurricane coast states on building code adoption, enforcement

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Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety

Apr 23, 2024, 07:00 ET

Virginia edges Florida for first, Louisiana climbs three spots, Mississippi most improved

RICHBURG, S.C., April 23, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- As hurricane season approaches, the Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS) today released the fifth edition of Rating the States, which evaluates building code adoption, enforcement and contractor licensing in the 18 states along the hurricane coastline from Texas to Maine. The signature study found that while some states work to ensure homes are resilient against extreme weather, many communities remain vulnerable because state or local jurisdictions have failed to adopt or enforce modern building codes or have allowed their codes to lapse and become outdated.

"Most people trust their state, city, or town has rules or codes to ensure homes are built to be safe and strong," explained IBHS CEO Roy Wright. "Yet, despite their proven effectiveness, less than 35 percent of Americans live in communities with an adopted modern building code."

IBHS conducts Rating the States every three years to coincide with the building code cycle. It ranks each state on a 100-point scale by analyzing specific factors in the current code environment that influence windstorm resilience. The report details best practices in residential-related building regulations, providing a roadmap each state can follow to improve its ability to mitigate damage from severe windstorms.

After two consecutive second-place finishes, Virginia topped the 2024 Rating the States rankings with a record-setting score of 96. It climbed back to the top spot after adopting the 2021 International Residential Code (IRC) and improving training programs for code officials and contractors. Florida, which has held the top spot since 2018 and matched its 2021 score of 95, slipped behind Virginia in this year's ratings.

"While not the top-rated state this time, Florida has a lot to be proud of," said IBHS Managing Director of Standards and Data Analytics Dr. Ian Giammanco. "After Hurricane Ian hit the state in 2022, IBHS assessed the performance of more than 3,000 homes. We estimate the protections included in the modern Florida Building Code prevented between $1 and 3 billion in damage to single family homes, alone."

South Carolina — identified as the "state to watch” in the 2021 report — ranked third in this year's Rating the States and New Jersey followed in fourth. Louisiana jumped three spots to fifth place after making training mandatory for code officials and adopting the 2021 IRC. The state also showed its commitment to resilient construction and re-roofing when it launched the Fortify Louisiana Homes program, which provides grants to help homeowners upgrade their roofs to the voluntary, beyond-code FORTIFIED standard. With a score of 90, Connecticut rounds out the top-third of the list.

"It is encouraging to see a record six states score in the 90s on this report," said Giammanco. "Yet, eight of 18 states have lower scores than they did in 2021. By not advancing efforts to increase resilience, these states risk falling behind and leaving their citizens and communities vulnerable to storms."

North Carolina, already six years behind the latest code, passed a moratorium on code adoption last year, which means it will not update its code until at least 2031. The Tar Heel State lost three points in this year's Rating the States study and remained eighth in the rankings but will likely fall in future reports as other states adopt newer versions of the code over the next seven years.

Rhode Island, Massachusetts and Maryland – eighth, ninth and 10th respectively – each lost one point since the last report in 2021. New York was the only state in the middle third to gain points, and its seven-point increase moved it into a tie for 11th with Georgia, which lost two points since the last report.

Mississippi had the biggest overall improvement since 2021, gaining 15 points by requiring licensing, competency testing and continuing education for contractors. However, these requirements do not apply to roofers and the state, ranked 15th, is still in the bottom third of the ratings. Likewise, Delaware gained six points since the 2021 report but continues to sit at the bottom of the rankings with just 23 points. The rest of the bottom third includes New Hampshire (13th), Maine (14th), Texas (16th) and Alabama (17th).

Since 2008, no state in the report has adopted a new residential code and enacted uniform statewide enforcement of that code. In the absence of statewide codes, local jurisdictions must fill the gap. This patchwork of code adoption leads to even greater inconsistencies in construction and leaves some communities far more vulnerable to extreme weather than others. Giammanco notes that inconsistent code adoption and enforcement resulted in catastrophic losses when Florida was impacted by Hurricane Andrew, which ultimately led to the state's focus on a strong code environment.

"The states in the lower third of the rankings have less than half the points of Virginia, with Delaware sitting an astounding 73 points behind," added Wright. "In these states, the onus for protecting homes is squarely on homeowners, who must look to voluntary construction standards, like FORTIFIED, to ensure they're ready for a storm."

Based on decades of IBHS research, the free FORTIFIED Home™ standard helps homeowners reduce their risk of storm damage by requiring upgrades that strengthen areas of buildings typically vulnerable to high winds and heavy rain. Homeowners can also choose to seek a FORTIFIED designation, which includes third-party verification that FORTIFIED requirements have been met. Studies show resilient construction, whether to the FORTIFIED standard or to a modern building code, can be achieved for a modest increase of approximately $2 per square foot.

The full 2024 Rating the States report is available at https://ibhs.org/public-policy/rating-the-states/.

About the Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS)

The IBHS mission is to conduct objective, scientific research to identify and promote effective actions that strengthen homes, businesses and communities against natural disasters and other causes of loss. Learn more at IBHS.org.

SOURCE Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety