Julie Rochman is president and CEO of the Insurance Institute for Business and Home Safety in Tampa, Fla. Before joining IBHS in 2007, she held several property/casualty insurance industry positions, including senior vice president of the American Insurance Association. She recently spoke with Business Insurance Senior Editor Mark A. Hofmann about issues surrounding building codes. Edited excerpts follow.

Q: Did Superstorm Sandy spur renewed interest in establishing stronger building codes?

A: Probably not as much as we would have liked. The Sandy zone affected several states, but the two that people seem to focus on when it comes to codes are New York and New Jersey. New Jersey actually had a strong building code regime in place. Newer structures that were built to the new codes performed pretty well in the face of Sandy's winds, but the storm surge was the problem. After Sandy, Gov. Chris Christie really focused on coastal flooding and flood maps and proper elevation.

New York is a little different story. New Jersey had a strong statewide building code in place. New York basically has two codes. There's a code for New York City and a code for the rest of the state. The challenge in New York is that so much of the building stock is old, so even if they update the code it won't affect those structures. What do you do with the existing building stock to make it more resilient? The good news is there are lots of conversations happening at both the New York City and state level on just that issue.

Q: What are the critical elements of a building code for commercial structures?

A: Commercial structures are very different from residential structures. There are more engineering and construction requirements because they're public spaces. The overarching model code for commercial structures is the International Building Code or IBC. That code classifies structures by use and applies different requirements to each classification. Some of those have to do with structural strength, including seismic provisions, wind and flood provisions, egress, ventilation and fire safety.

Commercial structure building codes are more readily accepted. The liability of commercial structures is much greater because you have many more people coming and going. There are also international existing building codes and there are system-specific codes.

The bottom line for me is that codes are a minimum standard for occupancy, the minimal legal level at which you can put people in the building or the minimum life-safety standard.

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People shouldn't rely too much on codes when it comes to a decision on sheltering in place because the codes in general are designed to keep the building up long enough for safe evacuation.

Q: What are the challenges facing advocates of stronger building codes?

A: Enforcement is key. The presence of a code is a threshold. If the code isn't enforced, then the standard is essentially worthless. There is not uniform enforcement of codes in many states and in other places. Even though the model codes might be adopted at the state level, they allow local opt-out or weakening amendments which reduce safety and undermine uniformity, which from an underwriting perspective is very important.

The process of enacting strong building codes is very complicated. The international model codes are on three-year cycles, and during those three years thousands of suggested improvements are brought forth. There is limited time for substantive discussion, and it is always the case in public policy that it is easier to do nothing than to do something.

Q: Is there organized opposition to enhancing building codes?

A: I wouldn't say there is organized opposition but there are definitely stakeholders who will oppose adoption or enforcement of code provisions that they think will cost them more money. For example, if an existing product needs to be altered or discontinued because of new technical standards, then the manufacturer will oppose that.