Opinion: Inspections of construction that exceed minimum code

Inquiry:

00-08

Subject:

Inspections of construction that exceed minimum code

Code:

UBC Sec. 106.4.1

Submitted By:

MN B.O. Uniformity Committee

Approved By:

Thomas R. Joachim, State Building Official

Issue Date:

January 12, 2000

Question:

Are the parts of building projects regulated by the code required to be inspected to the approved plans even though they exceed minimum code requirements?

Answer:

Yes. UBC state in part "Such approved plans and specifications shall not be changed, modified, or altered without authorizations from the Building Official, and all work regulated by this Code shall be done in accordance with the approved plans."

Comments:

This section not only requires that the Building Official authorizes any changes, but states that the work cannot be different than the approved plans.

Division comments:

In the 1988 UBC section 303(a) [1997 UBC 106.4.1] was changed to read, "all work regulated by this code (underlining added) shall be done in accordance with the approved plans."

To clarify the meaning of this change, the 1988 analysis of revisions states, "The section has been revised to indicate that the building official is responsible only for compliance with elements of a plan that are regulated by the building or other codes; he is not responsible for the color of carpeting, exterior paint or use of a particular brand name product. The Mechanical and Administrative Codes have been similarly amended."