James Lindsay, author and founder of the intellectual space New Discourses, recently put a spotlight on how international bodies have shaped things as local as municipal building codes — pointing to Dallas as an example.
In Dallas, builders must meet specific requirements set by the International Code Council (ICC) that align with the UN’s blueprint for “Sustainable Development Goals.”
Since May 2023, the City of Dallas has required all structures to comply with certain building and design codes, property maintenance, and land use regulations adopted by the ICC.
These include the requirements of the 2021 International Energy Conservation Code (IECC) and the 2021 International Residential Code, according to a City checklist for the issuance of a Residential Energy Compliance Certificate.
The IECC is a building code established by the ICC in 2000 and updated every three years to establish purported best practices and minimum design requirements for energy-efficient residential construction.
Many states and municipal governments in the United States, including the City of Dallas, have adopted the building code. For a full list of ICC codes adopted by the City’s Plan Review and Field Service Inspections division, click here.
“In order to do home building or renovations in the City of Dallas, you have to ensure that, among other things, your building is up to energy code, which since last year is based on the requirements of the 2021 International Energy Conservation Code,” wrote Lindsay in a thread on X.
Lindsay said the people of Dallas should immediately be asking themselves, “Why are international regulations in use on local building construction?”
“We kinda know why,” continued Lindsay, referring to the UN’s 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, a plan to track, monitor, and restrict behaviors based on carbon output. The agenda is being pushed in the name of combating climate change and is promoted around the world as a path to “sustainable development.”
The agenda is based on a shared blueprint adopted by UN member states in 2015 and includes 17 Sustainable Development Goals that “recognize that ending poverty and other deprivations requires improving health and education, reducing inequality, spurring economic growth, and tackling climate change.”
“This is normal. All cities and towns follow the International codes. Delete this post,” a social media user wrote in response to Lindsay’s post.
Dallas adopted its ICC codes in 2021 after the Biden administration announced a national goal to reduce carbon emissions by 50-52% from 2005 levels by 2030.
The Dallas Express reached out to the City to confirm whether design and construction requirements were strictly based on the ICC code or if other factors guided its development goals, but the publication did not hear back by press time.