WTRF-TV Wheeling, W.Va.
West Virginia Senator backs bill to roll back Biden-era housing efficiency mandates
By Amber Baker
WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia is backing new legislation that would roll back Biden administration energy-efficiency mandates for federally financed housing, arguing the requirements are driving up construction costs and limiting access to affordable homes.
Capito joined Sen. John Barrasso of Wyoming and other Republican lawmakers in introducing the HOUSE Act, which would repeal a final determination by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the U.S. Department of Agriculture that requires new HUD- and USDA-financed housing to meet updated energy-efficiency standards.
“Families in West Virginia deserve to have affordable housing,” Capito said in a statement. “The Green New Deal-style requirements created by the Biden administration have made home costs rise, making it extremely hard for many to buy their first home. I’m proud to join my colleagues in putting a stop to this overreach.”
The legislation is co-sponsored by Sens. Dan Sullivan of Alaska, Pete Ricketts of Nebraska, Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming, Markwayne Mullin of Oklahoma, John Hoeven of North Dakota, Kevin Cramer of North Dakota, Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee, Bernie Moreno of Ohio, Deb Fischer of Nebraska, Cindy Hyde-Smith of Mississippi and Todd Young of Indiana. Rep. Andy Biggs of Arizona has introduced companion legislation in the House.
At issue are the 2021 International Energy Conservation Code standards for new residential and commercial construction. Supporters of the HOUSE Act say the updated rules can add up to $31,000 to the price of a new home, with projected energy savings not realized for decades. A regulatory analysis from the Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Department of Agriculture in 2023 estimated the changes would reduce new construction for Federal Housing Administration borrowers.
The Biden administration adopted the standards in 2024, requiring federally financed single-family homes to meet the updated codes. Earlier this year, the Department of Housing and Urban Development extended compliance deadlines for FHA-insured multifamily and single-family construction into late 2025 and mid-2026.
Under the HOUSE Act, the Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Department of Agriculture would revert to the 2009 efficiency standards. The bill would also bar the Department of Veterans Affairs from instituting similar requirements for VA-backed mortgages and specify that the Federal Housing Finance Agency does not have authority to impose them.
Additionally, the legislation would prevent the Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Department of Agriculture from adopting any new efficiency mandates unless at least 26 states had already enacted comparable standards.
The bill now awaits consideration in the Senate.