November 1, 2002—In October, President Bush signed the National Construction and Safety Team Act, which will provide a framework to coordinate all future federal responses to building failures.
The law directs the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) to investigate future building disasters that result in insubstantial loss of life or posed the potential for substantial loss of life.
NIST will have the authority to determine the cause of a failure, recommend changes to building codes, and evaluate emergency and evacuation procedures. Also, NIST will name public and private specialists to investigative teams following building collapses and will have broad powers to obtain full site access, including building plans. Such investigations are meant to improve the safety and structural integrity of buildings in the United States.
For more information, contact NIST.
