Ordinances adopted by the local jurisdiction may allow that jurisdiction to:

• A. ignore all other fire or building codes.
• B. begin the consensus code-making process.
• C. use national or international fire codes as their own.
• D. develop fire codes that address hazardous processes.

Answer: (C)

Local governments use ordinances to adopt codes developed elsewhere by reference, making those codes enforceable as the jurisdiction’s own fire and building regulations. When a jurisdiction adopts national or international fire codes in this way, it uses established standards as its local code, often with the ability to add local amendments to fit specific conditions. This approach provides consistency with neighboring communities and with recognized standards while giving the jurisdiction control over how the codes are applied locally.

Isolating the other ideas helps: an ordinance isn’t about ignoring other codes, and the consensus code-making process is driven by standards organizations rather than municipalities issuing an ordinance to start it. While a jurisdiction can create its own codes for hazardous processes, the question focuses on adopting external codes as the jurisdiction’s code, which is achieved through adoption by reference.