MHCC Agrees with MHI’s Recommendation to Reject Wholesale Adoption of DOE Energy Standards into HUD Code
The Manufactured Housing Consensus Committee (MHCC) kicked off the first in a series of meetings intended to align the HUD Code with the Department of Energy’s (DOE) manufactured housing energy conservation standards (Energy Rule). The MHCC agreed with MHI’s recommendation to reject the incorporation of the DOE energy standards into the HUD Code by reference; instead, the MHCC began the vital task of drafting specific language into the HUD Code, imposing energy standards that adhere to the realities of manufactured home construction. MHI is pleased that MHCC utilized the proposal submitted by the Association to help draft the language.
MHI CEO Lesli Gooch spoke at the meeting, noting the conflict between the proposed DOE and HUD rules, the confusion crafted by two separate agencies engaging in the rulemaking process, and the costs to consumers when rules are made without a solid understanding of the factory-building processes that are the foundation of manufactured housing. Speaking at the start of the meeting, Gooch argued that “because of the many conflicts, ambiguities, and impossibilities of the Energy Rule when applied to manufactured home construction, wholesale adoption of the Energy Rule into the HUD Code is not appropriate.”
MHI President Mark Bowersox also addressed the committee, reiterating MHI’s position and highlighting the problems with incorporating the DOE standards by reference. He also emphasized that the DOE standards are likely to create an additional burden for manufactured home buyers, potentially adding thousands of dollars to the cost of a new home and pushing this mode of affordable housing out of reach for many consumers. He stressed this is counter to HUD’s mandate to “facilitate the availability of manufactured homes and to increase homeownership for all Americans.”
The meeting of the MHCC, and another meeting scheduled in November, are a result of MHI’s ongoing strong advocacy efforts and part of MHI’s multipronged strategy to stop the DOE standards for manufactured housing from being implemented until properly incorporated into the HUD Code to ensure feasibility and cost-effectiveness.
Source: Manufactured Housing Institute (MHI)
