Easton is First Building Department in Maryland to 
   Achieve IAS Accreditation

The town of Easton Building Inspection Division and Code Enforcement Office is the first jurisdiction in Maryland to achieve Building Department Accreditation through the International Accreditation Service (IAS).
 
Located near the eastern shore of the Chesapeake Bay, Easton is a small, but growing community of about 16,500 people, making it the smallest U. S. jurisdiction to earn the IAS accreditation. The Building Inspection Division and Code Enforcement Office, which includes six highly skilled code and inspection professionals, provides building safety services to commercial and residential customers.
 
Easton’s building code official, Donald Richardson, says the town opted to go through the accreditation process for several reasons. “We wanted an independent verification that we are operating at acceptable standards and not imposing excessive process and procedures on the property owners and contractors working in the town of Easton. We also wanted to identify the strengths and weaknesses of our organization so that we can continually improve our services to meet the needs of the community.” 
 
The accreditation process began with a pre-evaluation review by IAS in April 2014 and concluded with full on-site evaluation in February 2015. Accreditation was granted in May 2015.
 
The IAS accreditation program provides a trusted, independent assessment and verification of the Town’s capabilities, efficiency, and effectiveness, verifying that it is operating at the highest legal, and technical standards.
 
Evaluators observed work activities in the offices and visited construction sites to appraise the performance of the town’s application, permitting, plan review, inspection and code compliance process.
 
The IAS Building Department Accreditation program is based on the IAS Accreditation Criteria for Building Departments/Code Enforcement Agencies (AC251). IAS assessed Easton across 12 distinct categories of accreditation criteria: jurisdictional information, general operations, staff information, permitting information, budget, construction codes, plan reviews, professional credentials/licenses, inspections, complaints and appeals, certificates of occupancy and on-site evaluations. As part of the process, the IAS team also reviewed the town’s quality control manual, operating policies and procedures, and interviewed community leaders and staff.
 
The accreditation criteria, although consistent with how the town has operated for several years, is now documented in a written format rather than just a knowledge-based format. The criteria continues to be refined to provide the highest quality and best practices for the community.
 
IAS evaluators were particularly impressed with the Easton’s inspection management program. The Building Inspection Division issues an estimated completion date for every application submitted. The dates automatically schedule inspections to monitor projects so required sequential inspections are performed. This ensures permits do not expire. The town also reviews historical permits during the plan review process and issues certificates to ensure all applications, permits and inspections have been properly managed.
 
The IAS accreditation program provides a trusted, independent assessment and verification of the town’s capabilities, efficiency, and effectiveness, verifying that it is operating at the highest legal and technical standards.
 
For more information about IAS or the Building Department Accreditation Program, visit www.iasonline.org or call 1-866-427-4422.

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A subsidiary of the International Code Council, IAS provides an independent assessment and verification that building departments meet the requirements of an internationally-recognized accreditation program. IAS accredits building departments and building department service providers, fire prevention and life safety departments, special inspection agencies, product certification agencies, inspection programs for metal building manufacturers, metal building assemblers, fabricator inspection programs, testing and calibration laboratories, inspection agencies, training agencies, curriculum developers and field evaluation bodies. A recognized accreditation body since 1975, IAS is a nonprofit, public benefit corporation. IAS is one of the leading accreditation bodies in the U.S. and a signatory to several international mutual recognition arrangements (MRAs).