Obama orders more earthquake resilience for gov’t buildings

WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama is ordering all new or renovated federal buildings to be equipped with the latest protections against earthquakes.

Obama signed an executive order on Tuesday creating a Federal Earthquake Risk Management Standard. The White House says the standard will improve federal buildings’ resilience to earthquakes, making them safer and lowering the costs for recovering from a quake.

Obama’s order says agencies constructing or updating federal buildings must ensure they’re built with earthquake-resistant designs that meet the latest building codes. The White House says following those codes are one of the best ways to save the lives of people living in a building.

The White House says it’s also working to ensure government assets dollars are available for recovery efforts after an earthquake.