Builders lost without booklet of new codes

Until the new booklets arrive, Wake County Building Permits and Inspection Director Barry Mooneyham said his office has added a summary of the new codes on blue paper to the old North Carolina Building Code books.

"We now have a code book that has two sets of codes in them. We have the 2009 codes and the 2012 codes, and we're going to use it the best we can to do enforcement," Mooneyham said.

Dan Tingen, a builder who helped write the new codes as a member of the Building Code Council, said last-minute changes caused the printing delay.

"I would argue that there probably should have been some people who should have stepped forward and said, 'Wait a minute guys. This is not going to be practical. We can't possibly get the books printed by that date,'" Tingen said.

Builders pushed to move back the effective date for the new codes, but that would have required legislative approval.

Tingen said he thinks the council should consider updating the code every five to six years, as opposed to the current system where they update it every two to three years.