HB 161 Alabama House · 2025 Regular Session

Building codes; standardization of certain non-residential building codes, provided; practice architecture and duties of local building code officials, further provided

HB 161 authorizes county and municipal governing bodies to establish permitting and inspection programs for non-residential buildings. It directs the Division of Construction Management to review and potentially update state building codes every six years, beginning in 2027, to align with international model building codes. The bill specifies that these provisions generally do not apply to residential buildings, certain agricultural structures, or licensed healthcare facilities, which may follow their own regulations. Additionally, it sets minimum standards for energy codes and clarifies requirements for professional seals on certain construction documents.
Bill status passed 3 of 5 stages cleared
Introduction
Feb 2025
Committee Review
Apr 2025
House Passage
Feb 2025
Senate Passage
Governor
Introduced Feb 4, 2025 Last action Apr 29, 2025
Maddy AI version diff · 2 comparisons

What changed between versions

County and Municipal Government 1st Substitute Engrossed · 4 edits · Feb 13, 2025
MODERATE
The bill was converted from a substitute version to an engrossed version, finalizing the text for passage. The substantive policy content remains focused on updating state building codes to cover all non-residential buildings and clarifying enforcement roles between the state Division of Construction Management and local governments.
Scope change
The scope of the building code was expanded to include all non-residential buildings in the state, whereas previous versions had more limited applicability.
TECHNICAL

Removed internal tracking markers, date stamps, and draft headers from the substitute version to create a clean, final text for the engrossed bill.

DEFINITION

Reorganized and clarified definitions for key terms like 'Building Code Official' and 'Non-Residential Building' to ensure consistent application across the state.

ENFORCEMENT

Explicitly defined that the Division of Construction Management has primary enforcement authority for state buildings, schools, hotels, and theaters, while local governments enforce the code for other non-residential structures.

REQUIREMENT

Updated the applicability section to mandate that the state building code applies to all non-residential buildings, replacing earlier language that suggested limited or conditional coverage.

Floor votes

How they voted

This bill passed the House by voice vote (no roll call recorded).
Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions
15
Key actions
6
Committee
4
Amendments
2
Apr 29, 2025
Upper · Passed
Reported Out of Committee Second House
upper
Feb 18, 2025
Upper · Passed
Pending Committee Action in Second House (County and Municipal Government)
upper
Feb 13, 2025
Lower · Passed
Motion to Read a Third Time and Pass as Amended - Adopted Roll Call 130
lower
Feb 13, 2025
Lower · Passed
Motion to Adopt - Adopted Roll Call 129
lower
Feb 13, 2025
Introduced
State Government Engrossed Substitute Offered (State Government)
lower
Feb 12, 2025
Lower · Passed
Reported Out of Committee House of Origin (State Government)
lower
Feb 12, 2025
Introduced
State Government 1st Amendment (State Government)
lower
Feb 4, 2025
Lower · Passed
Pending Committee Action in House of Origin (State Government)
lower
1 primary · 0 co-sponsors

Sponsors

Role
Legislator
Party
State
District
P
Photo of Craig Lipscomb
Craig Lipscomb
RRepublican
AL
30