(The Center Square) – An Ohio congressman wants to stop new Biden administration mandates on new homes he says puts home ownership out of reach for many Americans.
Rep. Warren Davidson, R-Ohio, recently introduced the Home Affordability for Americans continuing resolution, saying green energy regulations are driving home prices up.
“’Bidenomics’ is killing Americans’ homeownership dreams,” Davidson said. “The Biden administration’s green energy mandate would raise new home prices by $31,000. At the same time, home prices are at a record high, mortgage rates are at a 20-year high, and home affordability has never been lower. Congress must put an end to this unnecessary green energy mandate.”
Thirty-eight other representatives joined Davidson in the introduction.
The resolution comes in response to the U.S. Departments of Housing and Urban Development and Agriculture’s final decision on new energy standard requirements backed by federal taxpayer dollars.
Those rules require all HUD and USDA-financed single-family home construction to be built to the 2021 International Energy Conservation Code and all HUD-financed multi-family homes to be built to the same code.
The Biden administration says the new regulations will save residents money, reduce energy use and pollution and improve residents’ health and comfort.
In a news release, HUD says single-family home energy costs will be cut by more than $950 a year.
Also, minimum energy standards will generate an estimated reduction of as much as 6.35 million metric tons in carbon emissions over 30 years, generating an annual societal cost savings of $13.9 million.
“Many people have been caught by surprise when utility costs spike,” said Marion McFadden, principal deputy assistant secretary for community planning and development at HUD. “Families should never have to find themselves making hard choices about whether to heat their home in winter or use cooling during a heat wave. The most cost-effective moment to invest in common sense energy efficiency is when you’re building a new home. These updates don’t just benefit the residents of these homes. They benefit us all by reducing carbon emissions that lead to climate change. Emissions savings from these standards is equivalent to taking 46,000 cars off the road every year.”
