The U.S. Resiliency Council – Principles of Formation

Building on the work of the SEAONC Existing Buildings Ratings Committee over the past four years, and the recommendations of an ATC User’s workshop, in 2011 the US Resiliency Council (USRC) was formed as a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization to establish a rating and accreditation system for certifying the resiliency of buildings to natural and man-made hazards. Measuring and improving the resiliency of the country’s building stock is a national imperative. Current methods to define and evaluate resiliency are often inconsistent and lack both standardization and verification. The USRC will adopt the SEAONC Existing Buildings Committee Earthquake Performance Rating System, as a basis for owners, lenders, communities and other stakeholders to evaluate and communicate building resilience objectively and consistently. The USRC will award Certification of Resilient Engineering (CoRE) Ratings, much like the US Green Building Council issues LEED ratings. The USRC intends that CoRE Ratings become the standard for quantifying the value of improved disaster resilience, and a key metric for due diligence in real estate transactions. Ratings will benefit building owners, lenders, tenants and government jurisdictions by increasing the value of well-designed properties and providing a means to quantify risk. Policy makers will use CoRE ratings to compare and prioritize relative risks and to form a basis for developing long-term resilience policy. The USRC will establish an accreditation program for professional engineers who wish to employ the CoRE system. Accreditation will require specific knowledge and training in structural engineering and the performance of buildings under natural and man-made hazards. CoRE Rating certification will also include peer review and validation by the USRC, to endure that its highest technical standards are maintained.

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