On Tuesday, President Barack Obama signed an executive order requiring federal agencies to use earthquake-resistant designs when remodeling an existing building or building a new one.
The order applies only to construction projects undertaken by a federal agency, not private citizens.
The text of the order requires federal agencies to comply with “earthquake-resistant design provisions of the International Building Code or the International Residential Code.” In leased space, federal agencies are to take what steps they can to adopt the “Standards of Seismic Safety for Existing Federally Owned and Leased Buildings.”
