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Step 1 - Building Inventory (Property) Process Step 2 - Rapid Visual Screening Process Step 3 - Seismic Evaluation Process Step 4 - Risk Analysis Process Step 5 - Peer Review and Planning Refinement Process Step 6 - Rehabilitation Action Plan Process Step 7 - Final Risk Reduction Design and Planning Process




Program Process-Step 1 - Building Inventory (Property) Process

The BSSP uses the Reclamation property inventory of all owned buildings.  Federally and privately owned buildings leased by Reclamation are also considered, but are not the focus of the BSSP.

The BSSP database is dynamically linked to the Reclamation Property Database (FIRM) to ensure that the BSSP is using the latest data available.

In many higher-risk buildings, the BSSP has obtained the "Buildings and Quarters" sheets and entered pertinent information into the BSSP database.

The BSSP uses the Reclamation building number in all references to a particular building.  This building number is a four-part number consisting of the region, project, index, and suffix numbers.  The region and project numbers use the standard Reclamation numbering system and the index and suffix numbers are the building numbers assigned by the project.  The BSSP database, FIRM, and all Reclamation Property Officers use the same numbering system.


Exemption Criteria

What criteria are used to identify what buildings will undergo the Rapid Visual Screening (RVS) Process (Step 2)?

Exemption criteria are applied to all Reclamation-owned buildings to remove exempt or low-risk buildings from consideration, such as picnic shelters or unoccupied buildings.  Special structures (bridges, transmission towers, industrial towers and equipment, piers and wharves, and hydraulic structures) are also exempt because they are required to perform to safety levels greater than the Life Safety Performance Level (LS) and generally have their own seismic safety programs.

Exempt Buildings:
  • Buildings classified for agricultural use, intended for incidental human occupancy, or occupied by persons for a total of less than 2 hours per day

  • Detached one- and two-family dwellings that are located in areas having a governing acceleration of less than 0.15

  • Special structures (noted above)

  • One-story buildings of wood or light steel construction of less than 3,000 square feet of area

  • Fully rehabilitated buildings

  • Post-benchmark buildings

  • Federally constructed buildings designed after January 5, 1990

  • Buildings held in trust by the Federal Government

  • Buildings scheduled for demolition or transfer in 5 years

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