The International Code Council (ICC), a membership association

Professional body

A professional association is usually a nonprofit organization seeking to further a particular profession, the interests of individuals engaged in that profession, and the public interest.The roles of these professional associations have been variously defined: "A group of people in a...

 dedicated to building safety, fire prevention

Fire prevention

Fire Prevention is a function of many fire departments. The goal of fire prevention is to educate the public to take precautions to prevent fires, and be educated about surviving them. It is a proactive method of reducing emergencies and the damage caused by them. Many fire departments have a Fire...

 and energy efficiency, develops the codes used to construct residential and commercial buildings, including homes and schools. Most U.S. cities, counties and states that adopt codes choose the International Codes, building safety codes

Building code

A building code, or building control, is a set of rules that specify the minimum acceptable level of safety for constructed objects such as buildings and nonbuilding structures. The main purpose of building codes are to protect public health, safety and general welfare as they relate to the...

 developed by the ICC. The International Codes also serve as the basis for construction of federal properties around the world, and as a reference for many nations outside the United States.

The ICC is a United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

-based non-profit, non-governmental organization

Non-governmental organization

A non-governmental organization is a legally constituted organization created by natural or legal persons that operates independently from any government. The term originated from the United Nations , and is normally used to refer to organizations that do not form part of the government and are...

 which allows governmental jurisdictions around the world and other stakeholders to collaborate

Collaboration

Collaboration is working together to achieve a goal. It is a recursive process where two or more people or organizations work together to realize shared goals, — for example, an intriguing endeavor that is creative in nature—by sharing...

 to create model building code

Model building code

A model building code is a building code that is developed and maintained by a standards organization independent of the jurisdiction responsible for enacting the building code. A local government can choose to adopt a model building code as their own. This saves local governments the expense and...

s.

The International Codes, or I-Codes, published by the ICC, provide minimum safeguards for people at home, at school and in the workplace.