aloa.org March 2025 Keynotes 21 Fact or Fiction The National Fire Protection Association and the International Code Council are government-sponsored organizations and have the authority to enforce any code referenced in their publications. Fiction The National Fire Protection Associa- tion (NFPA) and the International Code Council (ICC) are what are known as standards organizations. Essentially, NFPA and ICC are self-appointed gov- erning bodies that create codes and standards for use or adoption by others. Standards Organizations – Bodies that develop, coordinate, promul- gate, revise, amend, reissue, inter- pret or otherwise contribute to the usefulness of technical standards to those who employ them. They create uniformity across producers, consumers, government agencies, and other relevant parties regard- ing terminology, product specifica- tions, protocols and more. ICC and NFPA are not a part of any government organization and have no legal authority to require any govern- ment to adopt their codes, nor do they have any authority to enforce the codes they have created. The codes and stan- dards created by ICC and NFPA only become law once they are adopted by a government entity. On a related matter, neither organiza- tion gets a “kickback” on any fines lev- ied by any government entities to fund their respective organizations, as I’ve heard on more than one occasion. These organizations earn a sizable portion of their income via sales of publications and training classes. Sorry, conspiracy theorists. Thanks for tuning into the incredibly exciting first round of “Life Safety Codes in the Means of Egress: Fact or Fiction?” Stay tuned for more thrilling episodes coming to a Keynotes issue near you! Vernon Kelley, CFDI, CFFDI, CFL, CMIL, CPL, ICML, IFDI, LSFDI, has been involved in the locksmith industry since 1989. He is the proprietor of Vernon Kelley Security Consulting, LLC. A noted instructor, writer, and an expert in fire and life safety codes in the means of egress, he’s co-author of the book, Institutional Lock Shop Management and is editor-in-chief of the IAIL Forensic Locksmith Manual. Vernon is currently the first trustee of ALOA Institutional Lock- smiths, secretary for the ALOA Scholarship Foundation, and an ALOA SPAI non-voting director. He’s a recipient of the Lee Rognon, AIL Influential Leader, Robert Gress, Gerald J. Connelly, Jr. Pioneer, Ray D’Adamo ACE Instructor of the Year, and Keynotes Author of the Year awards. FIGURE 4. Locksmiths working in health care need to know about NFPA 101-2012.
