U.S. Reps. Mike Flood of Nebraska and Emanuel Cleaver of Missouri have introduced the “Streamlining Manufactured Housing Standards Act,” legislation that clarifies that only the U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development (HUD) has authority to establish energy efficiency and safety standards for manufactured housing.
“America has been grappling with a housing crisis and cutting red tape is one of the key tools to helping home builders create more housing,” said Rep. Flood. “Manufactured homes have historically been built to a HUD code, and in order to make manufactured homes a cost-effective option for consumers we must ensure that HUD has primary authority over all manufactured housing standards. Thank you to my colleague Rep. Cleaver for helping to lead this effort, and I look forward to working together to move this legislation through our committee and the full House.”
Manufactured housing in the U.S. is built to HUD’s National Manufactured Home Construction and Safety Standards (the HUD Code), a federal regulation found in 24 CFR Part 3280. This Code governs design, strength, fire resistance, energy-efficiency, and the performance of plumbing, heating, air conditioning, and electrical systems. All manufactured homes built after June 15, 1976, must have a certification label (HUD Tag), indicating compliance with the standards. This national code was established under the National Manufactured Housing Construction and Safety Standards Act of 1974, and preempts most state and local standards that do not meet or exceed its requirements.
“American families are drowning under a national housing affordability crisis that is limiting economic opportunity and sowing pessimism in the future,” said Rep. Cleaver. “By clarifying HUD’s important role in maintaining home energy-efficiency standards, we will ensure that federal experts in housing are the ones overseeing quality projects that enable the construction of manufactured housing nationwide. I’m proud to introduce this bipartisan legislation with Chairman Flood as we seek to lower housing costs by streamlining the regulation of quality, affordable homes in communities that need them most.”
HUD’s Office of Manufactured Housing Programs (OMHP) protects the health and safety of manufactured home residents through the enforcement of the federal manufactured home construction and safety standards, installation standards, and the administration of dispute resolution between manufacturers, retailers, and installers. As authorized by the National Manufactured Housing Construction and Safety Standards Act of 1974, HUD enforces standards both directly and through state agencies; inspects factories and retailer lots; regulates installation; administers dispute resolution; establishes and collects fees for each home built; authorizes a certification label for each section of a compliant home; pursues civil or criminal penalties for violations of the Act; and oversees the Manufactured Housing Consensus Committee.
“For more than 50 years, our industry has partnered with HUD to help millions of Americans achieve the dream of homeownership,” said Lesli Gooch, Ph.D., CEO of the Manufactured Housing Institute. “The Streamlining Manufactured Housing Standards Act reaffirms HUD’s sole authority over our construction standards, preserving the integrity of this long-standing partnership. Manufactured housing is the only form of housing built to a federal construction code, and we do it at scale—delivering quality homes across the country at attainable prices. We commend Chairman Flood and Ranking Member Cleaver for their bipartisan leadership in protecting the regulatory efficiency that is central to this partnership. Regulatory efficiency, combined with factory-built efficiency, is the formula that makes manufactured housing the most affordable quality homeownership option available. This bill preserves the regulatory side of that equation and strengthens a vital housing solution for families nationwide.”
