Whereas the Building Officials Association of British Columbia, under an administrative agreement with the Province, is responsible for education and examinations for persons applying for membership, and certification of members as registered building officials; And whereas the current lengthy process for certifying a Level One Building Official affects local governments ability to hire and retain qualified staff and provide building inspection services in a timely manner: Therefore be it resolved that UBCM urge the Province and the Building Officials Association of British Columbia to review reasons for the high failure rate in the Level 1 examination.
Ministry of Attorney General and Minister Responsible for Housing The Provinces first priority is the safety of British Columbians. Building officials play an important role in the construction, repair, alteration and demolition of buildings. The requirement that building officials be qualified to make compliance decisions is intended to help ensure consistent application and enforcement of standards for buildings across the province and a safer built environment for all citizens. A candidate for any level of practice is expected to demonstrate subject matter competency by achieving a passing score on each exam required for that level. Passing scores are set by the Building Officials Association of British Columbias Exam Development Committee in consultation with the International Code Council ICC at a scaled score of 80 for all the Building Officials Association of British Columbia exams. The Building Officials Association of British Columbia has published detailed information about their exams, including how scores are calculated and reported, at www.boabc.org. As the delegated administrative authority, the Building Officials Association of British Columbia has made examinations for all levels of building officials available online to facilitate greater accessibility and expediency. Individuals apply through the Building Officials Association of British Columbias website for authorization to take an exam, which is typically granted within a business day. An exam that is not proctored can be written immediately. A proctored exam can be written as soon as the candidate has made arrangements with an independent online proctor. To support exam takers, the Building Officials Association of British Columbia publishes free content outlines for each exam online. It is also actively expanding offerings of online courses which are available 247. Other courses to assist candidates to prepare are already available online and in person from post-secondary institutions such as BCIT or Camosun College. Unlike the Building Officials Association of British Columbias voluntary certification scheme, the building official qualification scheme under the Building Act does not include a minimum work experience requirement. Upon successful completion of all qualifying exams, a Building Level 1 candidate can be registered in a class and upon registration will be eligible to practice in that class. The Province has also made several amendments to the qualification framework to better support local governments through the transition to mandatory qualification requirement. This includes adding trainee classes to allow individuals to temporarily operate at a higher qualification level while gaining needed skills and receiving training and development support from an employer to achieve the regular qualification. Prospective new local government building officials can take advantage of this to commence employer-supported operation as Building Level 1 in Training officials upon completion of a single exam. Local governments can also work with a qualified contractor or other professional or seek to borrow a qualified member of staff from a neighbouring jurisdiction if needed. We continue to work closely with the Building Officials Association of British Columbia to support municipalities and regional districts to ensure the framework is meeting the needs of local governments and the people they serve.