World Standards Day: The Importance of the Copyright System That Supports Safety Standards Innovation

Every October 14, we mark World Standards Day, though most people have never heard of it. In fact, because most people don’t know much about safety standards at all, you’d be forgiven if this day wasn’t on your radar. But it should be. From the fire codes that protect our homes to the technical standards that shape building designs, these unseen rules quietly keep us safe every single day. And right now, the very foundation upon which these codes and standards are based—copyright law—is under attack. If these attacks are successful, the incentives to develop, update, innovate, and disseminate these invaluable codes and standards may evaporate.

At the center of our system of codes and standards are nonprofit Standards Development Organizations (SDOs) like the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) and the International Codes Council (ICC). These SDOs have been around for many decades developing the codes and standards that help prevent fires, electrical failures, and other life-threatening hazards. These kinds of standards are developed through a consensus-driven process, with input from thousands of experts across different fields—all working to advance public safety. But without the incentives and protections established by our copyright system to fuel the development, innovation, and dissemination of codes and safety standards, the health and safety of millions of Americans are put at risk.

The Important Intersection of Codes and Copyright

America’s codes and standards that ensure public health and safety, whether building and electric codes or fire prevention and construction standards, are protected under U.S. copyright law. For 125 years, these codes and standards have been developed by Standards Development Organizations (SDOs), which invest their money, time, resources, and expertise into the creation of these vital copyrighted works. America’s federal, state, local, and municipal governments have come to rely on the good work and expertise of these SDOs so much so that they often incorporate their codes and standards into the laws they enact.

Nonprofit SDOs rely on copyright protections to incentivize and sustain the development, maintenance, innovation, updates, and dissemination of safety standards and codes. These protections allow SDOs to:

• Fund the research, technical committee work, and publication of codes and standards;
• Prevent misuse or unauthorized alterations that could undermine safety; and
• Ensure continued access to trusted, science-based information.

Put simply: copyright safeguards the system that protects all of us.

The Threat Against Codes and Standards

Unfortunately, the ability of SDOs to continue developing and maintaining safety standards is being threatened on multiple fronts by:

• For-profit companies that steal codes and standards to use in their competing products or services without compensating the SDOs that created them.
• Legislative and legal challenges that attempt to destroy or weaken the copyright protection afforded to codes and standards.
• Courts that fail to understand how codes and standards are created and why copyright protection is so vital their creation.
• Misinformation campaigns that foster public misunderstanding about where safety codes come from, who develops them and why copyright is so important to their continued viability.

When these challenges go unchecked, the results are far-reaching: less incentive for innovation, fewer resources to develop, maintain, and update critical codes and standards, and increased risks to everyday citizens who have grown to rely on them (even though you may not realize it). Copyright protections are key to maintaining and incentivizing the standards setting system and ensuring that organizations like NFPA, ICC, and so many other SDOs can continue doing this vital work.

By Protecting U.S. Codes and Standards, the Pro Codes Act Ensures the Continued Safety of Millions of Americans

Since copyright law grants copyright owners, like SDOs, the right to control the use of their copyrighted works, this raises a difficult question: How do we ensure that SDOs continue to develop high-quality standards and codes integral to the functioning of American society while also ensuring that American citizens have access to them when they have been incorporated into law by reference? There’s an easy answer to that question—it’s the Pro Codes Act.

The Protecting and Enhancing Public Access to Codes Act (Pro Codes Act), H.R.4072, specifies that any SDO-developed code or standard that is later incorporated into federal, state, local, or municipal law or regulation by reference, in whole or in part, will not lose its copyright protection by virtue of its incorporation into the law, as long as: (1) the SDO makes the portion of the code or standard that was incorporated by reference into law publicly accessible online; and (2) there is no cost to the public for accessing those portions of the code or standard.

The Pro Codes Act is a “win-win-win-win” solution because:

• The public gets free access to important codes and standards;
• SDOs maintain copyright protection for the codes and standards they develop, which ensures they can recoup development costs and are incentivized to create new codes and keep existing ones updated;
• Taxpayers do not bear the cost of funding the development of these vital codes and standards; and
• Lawmakers and governmental bodies will continue to avail themselves of the expertise of SDOs rather than undertake the time and resource-intensive task of developing standards and codes themselves—a job they are admittedly unqualified to do—and will continue to benefit from the SDO’s regular updates that keep pace with advancements in science and technology, best practices, and lessons learned.

Safety Doesn’t Happen by Chance

To improve public awareness and clarify confusion about the development of codes and standards, NFPA has kicked off a national public awareness campaign. The core message of NFPA’s campaign is to make safety visible again. It encourages the public to learn more about the risks posed when the copyright law protections of safety codes and standards, which protect people, homes, and communities, are undermined. The campaign highlights the Pro Codes Act as a necessary solution to ensure that SDOs continue to be able to develop, innovate, and disseminate standards and codes for the public good.

This isn’t just about protecting intellectual property; it’s about preserving the collaborative model used by SDOs for decades to create codes and standards that has quietly kept millions of people safe every day.

What You Can Do

On this World Standards Day, you can stand up for safety and the systems that support it—including our copyright law system:

• Learn more – Visit DontChanceSafety.org, NFPA’s campaign website, to learn how codes and standards are developed and why protecting their copyright is essential to our safety.
• Take action – Urge your members of Congress to cosponsor the Pro Codes Act by clicking here to contact your representatives.
• Share the message – Use your platforms to educate others. Post about the campaign using the hashtag #Don’tChanceSafety and encourage your network to learn more.

Safety standards protect lives. And copyright protects the standards and the system of safety. On World Standards Day, let’s celebrate that system and commit to defending it.

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