This story is part of a series of interviews with Safer + Simpler Missouri coalition partners.
“Building code is the bare minimum that folks design to; I think sometimes people forget that,” says Ryan King. “Code should just be in the background, providing safe space for everybody.”
King is a licensed architect and Principal at Lawrence Group, and he’s been a board member of AIA Missouri (an accredited state chapter of the American Institute of Architects) for almost 20 years. He chaired the organization’s statewide-code committee before AIA Missouri became a founding partner of Safer + Simpler Missouri.
Code is the floor, not the ceiling, he explains – it represents a baseline standard the public should be able to trust in every building, everywhere. “The public should always just be trusting… that we’re providing them a safe built environment.”
But when that minimum threshold is inconsistent from one jurisdiction to the next, it becomes challenging for professionals to reliably deliver on that trust.
That’s because Missouri lacks a statewide minimum standard for building codes. Instead, codes are set, enforced, and updated by local jurisdictions. Currently in Missouri, 13 counties and 352 municipalities set their own building-code requirements.
To manage permit review across jurisdictions and states, Lawrence Group maintains a dedicated internal business unit that often is provided at additional service. That’s a direct, embedded cost to owners doing business. Even so, it can be confusing when code requirements change from one jurisdiction to the next. And confusion fosters an environment where mistakes can and do happen.
Code fragmentation leads to costly errors
On one project, King recalls, a plumbing requirement was missed because it hadn’t been needed where the team worked previously. The mistake was caught late in the project and required a costly rework.
That’s just one example. Safer + Simpler Missouri has heard similar stories all over the state.
Across Missouri, King says, it seems like every jurisdiction has adopted codes from different years. One city or county may use a recent book, while a neighboring area might use one from a previous decade. A single code book runs roughly 700 pages, and a new edition comes out every three years.
In fact, Safer + Simpler Missouri’s research revealed more than 40 separate code books in effect statewide, totaling over 17,000 pages. Some are more than 20 years old. And code requirements aren’t just numerous — they’re inconsistently organized, so finding “chapter and verse” to justify a design decision takes real staff time in every jurisdiction.
King finds the situation frustrating, and he’s not alone.
“[Inconsistent code] provides difficulty for architects and designers trying to follow them — who’s on what version, and what are we supposed to be designing to?”
In the big picture, code choice affects much more than a single project – it can impact a community’s bottom line. Jurisdictions with complicated or unpredictable building codes can lose business to simpler neighboring jurisdictions. Conversely, jurisdictions with clear, higher, more resilient standards are more attractive for long-term investment because buildings built to a higher bar need less retrofit work and hold value better as assets.
Missouri lags behind its neighbors
That reasoning applies to states, too. Missouri is one of only six U.S. states without a statewide building code — a distinct disadvantage, considering seven of the eight states bordering Missouri have a statewide building code standard.
“We’re not on par with our competition, with other states,” King notes.
As he sees it, establishing a statewide code is hardly a grand or novel thing to ask. It’s about achieving parity with neighboring states that make it easier to design and build to modern standards.
Disaster resilience matters, too. King also points to the documented shift in Tornado Alley, which has increased Missouri’s severe storm exposure. Modern codes create safer, more resilient communities by limiting storm damage and allowing them to rebuild more quickly. By contrast, inconsistent, non-resilient building stock has become a growing cost driver for insurance, rebuilding, and business continuity.
“Any help we can…get to simplify and standardize things is going to be helpful for everybody,” King stresses. “Not just designers.”
That’s why King supports enacting up-to-date baseline code statewide — to improve public safety, eliminate code confusion, and make Missouri more competitive. Fundamentally, it’s a matter of trust.
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