Design standards, building codes, and  voluntary certifications play a role in the federal fiscal exposure to the  effects of climate change. Standards- Developing Organizations Have Not Generally Used Forward-Looking Climate Information in Design Standards, Building Codes, and Voluntary Certifications

Standards-developing organizations generally have not used forward- looking climate information in design standards, building codes, and  voluntary certifications and instead have relied on historical observations,  according to our analysis, reports we reviewed, and representatives of  standards-developing organizations we interviewed. Some  standards-developing organizations periodically update the climate  information they use. Some standards-developing organizations have taken preliminary steps,  such as issuing guidance and statements, that may lead to the use of  forward-looking climate information in standards, codes, and  certifications. For example, in 2015 the American Society of Civil  Engineers issued a white paper about adapting engineering practices to a  changing climate that recommended, among other things, that engineers  work with scientists to better understand future climate extremes to  improve the planning and design of infrastructure. Reports and Representatives of Standards- Developing Organizations Identified Institutional and Technical Challenges to Using Forward-Looking Climate Information

Standards-developing organizations face institutional and technical  challenges to using the best available forward-looking climate information  in design standards, building codes, and voluntary certifications,  according to reports we reviewed and representatives of these  organizations and federal officials we interviewed. For example,  representatives of one standards-developing organization told us that  their members have not expressed interest in standards that use forward- looking climate information because it would require increased upfront  construction costs. Representatives of one standards-developing organization told us that  climate models provide a wide range of possible temperatures that is  difficult to use in their standards because the technical committee does  not know how to reflect this variability. Agencies Have Initiated Some Actions and Could Take More to Help Address Challenges, According to Reports, Standards- Developing Organizations, and Agency Officials

Federal agencies have initiated some actions to help standards- developing organizations address institutional and technical challenges to  using forward-looking climate information. Furthermore, in November 2015, MitFLG—which  FEMA chairs—issued a draft implementation strategy that seeks to  encourage federal support for more resilient standards and codes, but the  strategy does not specifically focus on using forward-looking climate  information. First, agencies could improve interagency coordination to address  institutional challenges. Federal policy directs agency standards executives—senior-level officials  who coordinate agency participation in standards organizations—to  coordinate their views on matters of paramount importance when they  participate in the same standards activities. OMB Circular A-119 also  directs the Secretary of Commerce, who has delegated this responsibility  to NIST, to coordinate and foster executive branch implementation of the  Circular, which addresses federal participation in the development and  use of voluntary consensus standards, and to sponsor, support, and chair  the Interagency Committee on Standards Policy (ICSP). Providing the Best Available Forward-Looking Climate Information  to Help Address Technical Challenges  Federal agencies that participate in the standards-developing process  and respond to climate-related issues could help address technical  challenges by providing the best available forward-looking climate  information for consideration in the standards-developing process,  according to reports we reviewed, our prior work, and representatives of  some standards-developing organizations and federal agency officials we  interviewed. We have previously found  that using the best available climate information, including forward-looking  projections, can be a part of a risk-management strategy for federal,  state, local, and private-sector decisions and investments. For example, NIST  convened a panel to, among other things, identify gaps in standards and  codes to make infrastructure more resilient to extreme weather and other  risks. Recommendation for Executive Action

To help reduce federal fiscal exposure by enhancing the resilience of  infrastructure to extreme weather, we recommend that the Secretary of  Commerce, through the Director of NIST, in consultation with MitFLG and  USGCRP, convene federal agencies for an ongoing governmentwide  effort to provide the best available forward-looking climate information to  standards-developing organizations for their consideration in the  development of design standards, building codes, and voluntary  certifications. Appendix I: Objectives, Scope, and Methodology

Our objectives were to examine (1) what is known about the use of  forward-looking climate information in design standards, building codes,  and voluntary certifications; (2) challenges, if any, that reports and  representatives of standards-developing organizations identified to using  forward-looking climate information; and (3) any actions that federal  agencies have taken to help address these challenges and additional  actions, if any, that reports, representatives of standards-developing  organizations, and agency officials identified. Global Change Research Program.
Why GAO Did This Study

Over the last decade, extreme weather cost the federal government more than $320 billion for, among other things, repairs to federal infrastructure, and according to the President's 2017 budget request, these costs may rise as the climate continues to change. GAO's prior work found that using the best available climate information, including forward-looking projections, can help manage climate-related risks.
Federal, state, local, and private decision makers use design standards, building codes, and voluntary certifications in the construction of infrastructure. Standards-developing organizations, such as professional engineering societies, issue standards, model codes, and certifications.
GAO was asked to review the use of forward-looking climate information by standards-developing organizations. This report examines (1) what is known about the use of such information in standards, codes, and certifications; (2) challenges standards organizations face to using climate information; and (3) actions federal agencies have taken to address such challenges and additional actions they could take. GAO analyzed laws and policies, reviewed reports, and interviewed representatives from 17 selected organizations and officials from agencies that address climate issues.

What GAO Found

Selected standards-developing organizations generally have not used forward-looking climate information—such as projected rainfall rates—in design standards, building codes, and voluntary certifications and instead have relied on historical observations. Further, some organizations periodically update climate information in standards, codes, and certifications, but others do not. Some standards-developing organizations have taken preliminary steps that may lead to the use of forward-looking climate information. For example, in 2015, the American Society of Civil Engineers issued a paper that recommended engineers work with scientists to better understand future climate extremes.
Standards-developing organizations face institutional and technical challenges to using the best available forward-looking climate information in design standards, building codes, and voluntary certifications, according to reports, representatives of these organizations, and federal officials. Institutional challenges include a standards-developing process that must balance various interests and can be slow to change. For example, representatives of some standards-developing organizations told GAO that their members have not expressed interest in standards that use forward-looking climate information. Technical challenges include difficulties in identifying the best available forward-looking climate information and incorporating it into standards, codes, and certifications. For example, representatives from one organization said that climate models provide a wide range of possible temperatures that is difficult to use in their standards.
Agencies have initiated some actions and could take more to help standards-developing organizations address challenges, according to various reports, representatives of standards-developing organizations, and agency officials. For example, in 2015, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) convened a panel that seeks to identify gaps in standards and codes to make infrastructure more resilient to extreme weather. In addition, officials from the U.S. Global Change Research Program (USGCRP)—which coordinates research across 13 federal agencies—told GAO they have begun discussions with representatives of standards-developing organizations on their climate information needs. In 2015, the Mitigation Framework Leadership Group (MitFLG)—which coordinates hazard mitigation efforts—issued a draft strategy to encourage federal support for more resilient standards and codes. Opportunities exist for additional agency actions that may help address the challenges organizations identified to using forward-looking climate information. Specifically, agencies that address climate issues could improve interagency coordination to help standards-developing organizations address institutional challenges and could provide the best available forward-looking climate information to help them address technical challenges. Federal policy directs agency standards executives—senior-level officials who coordinate agency participation in standards organizations—to coordinate their views when they participate in the same standards activities so as to present, whenever feasible, a single, unified position. The policy also directs the Secretary of Commerce, who has delegated the responsibility to NIST, to coordinate and foster executive branch implementation of the policy governing federal participation in the development of voluntary consensus standards. A governmentwide effort could also present a benefit by reducing the federal fiscal exposure to the effects of climate change.

What GAO Recommends

GAO recommends that NIST, in consultation with USGCRP and MitFLG, convene an ongoing governmentwide effort to provide forward-looking climate information to standards organizations. Commerce neither agreed nor disagreed with GAO's recommendation.