GOP Effort Launched to Keep Energy Dept. from Enforcing Energy Standards on Manufactured Housing
- Craig Webb
- 2 days ago
- 2 min read
A Congressional leader on housing policy who's bullish on manufactured homes helped introduce a bill Sept. 9 that prohibits the from Secretary of Energy from enforcing energy efficiency standards on manufactured housing.
"I'm looking to put all authority for manufactured housing inside [the Department of Housing and Urban Development]," Rep. Mike Flood said during a panel discussion in Washington during the HUD-sponsored Innovative Housing Showcase. Energy Department requirements increase building costs, the Nebraska Republican said, and his goal is to make housing more affordable.
Flood's H.R. 5184 was filed by Rep. Erin Houchin, R-IN, and co-sponsored by Flood, who is chairman of the Financial Services Committee's Housing and Insurance Subcommittee. Flood said he expects to mark up a comprehensive housing bill in his subcommittee later this year, with a goal of getting a bill to the House floor next spring.
That bill remains to be written, but if Flood has it's way, companies that manufacture housing and housing components will get a boost. “Manufactured housing has evolved way beyond anything their detractors give them credit for,” he said. "We need [local officials] to see the value of manufactured home as part of the American dream."
Most of the exhibits involved manufactured home, but advocates of trusses and wall panels were represented once again this year by the Structural Building Components Association the National Framers Council, and 84 Lumber. They joined to build the "Big Green House" on the National Mall. This year's version was a 3,000-square-foot, two-story duplex that shows how the use of trusses and wall panels save builders time, labor, and money. The house was erected in less than 12 hours.
The showcase also featured a panel discussion featuring Sen. Tim Scott, R-SC, and HUD Secretary Scott Turner. Sen. Scott is Chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs. In late July, that panel voted unanimously to approve the ROAD to Housing Act, S.2651. Scott said the bill seeks to get rid of antiquated rules, such as the requirement that manufactured housing be built on a chassis.
It also creates carrots and sticks to influence local officials. For instance, "When you increase your housing supply, you become eligible for more CDBG (community development block grants)," Scott said. "If you do less, you get less CDBG. There’s more focus on rural housing. ... In the private sector, you've done workarounds to current rules. If we can get rid of those hurdles, the private sector can respond. That’s what a competitive free market system allows, when the government gets out of the way.”