Let me add a couple other points. Codes are MINIMUMS! They're there because of either determination by engineers or from past safety experience. And just because a locale may not have the exact same code or doesn't enforce it isn't a free ticket to ignore it.

I've read a number of accounts of deck collapses and while a new deck can fail, it's frequently ones that have been up a few years, where joining was not done properly or weights shifting as people move on and off the deck have weakened a vulnerable part of the structure. Add to this that unlike house framing---deck structures are constantly exposed to weather---therefore likely to show weaknesses in design or construction.