HOUSE Act of 2025

Bill: 119-hr-75
Sponsor: full_name: Rep. Biggs, Andy [R-AZ-5]
Introduced: 2025-01-03
Policy area: Energy
Subjects: Administrative law and regulatory procedures

Building construction

Congressional oversight

Department of Housing and Urban Development

Energy efficiency and conservation

Housing and community development funding

Housing industry and standards

Intergovernmental relations

State and local government operations
Latest action: action_date: 2025-02-06
text: Referred to the Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity.

Summaries:
action_date: 2025-01-03
action_desc: Introduced in House
text: <p><strong>Helping Owners with&nbsp;Unaffordable Shoddy Edicts Act of 2025 or the HOUSE Act of 2025</strong></p><p>This bill directs the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the Department of Agriculture (USDA) to withdraw the final determination titled<em> Adoption of Energy Efficiency Standards for New Construction of HUD- and USDA-Financed Housing</em> and published on April 26, 2024.</p><p>The determination adopted updated minimum energy efficiency standards for newly built homes (except manufactured housing) financed through certain HUD and USDA programs. Specifically, it adopted the (1) 2021 International Energy Conservation Code (IECC), which&nbsp;applies to single family homes and multifamily low-rise buildings up to three stories; and (2) 2019&nbsp;American National Standards Institute/American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers/Illuminating Electrical Society (ANSI/ASHRAE/IES) Standard 90.1, which&nbsp;applies to multifamily residential buildings with four or more stories. HUD and USDA must also revert to using the energy efficiency standards required before the determination.</p><p>In addition, the bill prohibits HUD, USDA, and the Department of Veterans Affairs from taking actions or using federal funds to implement or enforce the determination or any substantially similar determination. It also prohibits the Federal Housing Finance Agency from finalizing, implementing, or enforcing a determination or rule relating to energy efficiency standards for single and multifamily housing.</p><p>Finally, the bill prohibits HUD and USDA from adopting updates to the IECC or ANSI/ASHRAE/IES Standard 90.1 in certain circumstances unless&nbsp;at least 26 states have adopted codes or standards that meet or exceed the update's requirements.</p>

tv_txt: I 119th CONGRESS 1st Session H. R. 75 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES January 3, 2025 Mr. Biggs of Arizona (for himself, Mr. Ogles , and Mr. Higgins of Louisiana ) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Financial Services , and in addition to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs , for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned A BILL To require the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development and the Secretary of Agriculture to withdraw a final determination relating to energy efficiency standards for housing, and for other purposes.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Helping Owners with Unaffordable Shoddy Edicts Act of 2025 or the HOUSE Act of 2025 . 2. Energy efficiency standards for housing (a) In general The Secretary of Housing and Urban Development and the Secretary of Agriculture— (1) shall withdraw the final determination announced in the notice of final determination entitled Adoption of Energy Efficiency Standards for New Construction of HUD- and USDA-Financed Housing (89 Fed. Reg. 33112); (2) may not take any action or use any Federal funds to implement or enforce the final determination described in paragraph (1) or any substantially similar final determination; and (3) shall revert energy efficiency standards for covered programs under such final determination to the energy efficiency standards required before such final determination. (b) Action by additional agencies (1) Department of Veterans Affairs The Secretary of Veterans Affairs may not take any action or use any Federal funds to implement or enforce a final determination that is substantially similar to the final determination described in subsection (a)(1). (2) Federal Housing Finance Agency Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency may not finalize, implement, or enforce a determination or rule relating to energy efficiency standards for single and multifamily housing. (c) Consideration of State standards Section 109(d) of the Cranston-Gonzalez National Affordable Housing Act ( 42 U.S.C. 12709(d) ) is amended— (1) in paragraph (1), by striking and at the end; (2) in paragraph (2), by striking the period at the end and inserting ; and ; and (3) by adding at the end the following: (3) not less than 26 States have adopted an energy efficiency code or standard that meets or exceeds the requirements of the revised code or standard. .