July 7, 2023
Manitoba Government Updates National Codes, Harmonizing Codes Across Canadian Jurisdictions and Reducing Internal Trade Barriers
The Manitoba government will adopt the 2020 national model codes for building, plumbing, fire and energy as published by the National Research Council as of Jan. 1, 2024, following extensive consultation with industry, Labour and Immigration Minister Jon Reyes announced today.
“The adoption of the 2020 national model codes will bring Manitoba up to date for the building, plumbing, fire and energy industries in a number of key areas, including accessibility and energy efficiency,” said Reyes. “Based on feedback received from the public and key stakeholders, our government has adopted the most current codes available as part of its commitment to removing trade barriers, reducing industry costs and improving Manitoba’s economic competitiveness.”
As part of the Manitoba government’s commitments under the Canadian Free Trade Agreement, the Manitoba Building Code, Manitoba Plumbing Code, Manitoba Energy Code and Manitoba Fire Code must be regularly updated to ensure compliance with the latest health and safety standards.
The Manitoba Building Code, Manitoba Plumbing Code, Manitoba Energy Code and Manitoba Fire Code will all be updated to the 2020 national model codes as of Jan. 1, 2024, giving stakeholders time to adjust to the changes. The 2020 code modernizes requirements in a number of areas related to building, plumbing, fire and energy codes.
Public consultations conducted last winter and again in June indicated industry professionals preferred to adopt the 2020 code sooner, bypassing the 2015 edition, to minimize administrative burden associated with implementing new code requirements, the minister noted.
Implementing the codes by Jan. 1, 2024, meets the Manitoba government’s commitment to have new codes in place by March 31, 2024, as per the Regulatory Reconciliation and Cooperation Table agreement under the Canada Free Trade Agreement, the minister added.
The full list of changes to the model national codes is available at https://ccbfc-cccbpi.ca/en/significant-technical-changes-to-2020-codes/.
For more information and resources on the 2020 national model codes, visit https://www.gov.mb.ca/labour/its/bldg_codes/itsm_bldgconst.html.
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