The NAHB shares 'deregulatory recommendations'
The Trump Administration has pledged to aggressively curtail the regulatory landscape for U.S. businesses, and the NAHB is taking them up on the offer.
In a 70-page letter addressed to Russell T. Vought, director of the Office of Management and Budget, the association presents a raft of legislation it believes is ripe for change. Or for outright abolishment.
The move comes in response to the administration's call from the private sector to submit harmful or onerous policies that are hampering companies and industries. The NAHB explains the urgency underpinning its submissions:
"NAHB’s submission to OMB emphasized how regulations drive up housing costs and cited an NAHB study showing that, on average, regulations imposed by government at all levels account for nearly 25% of the price of building a single-family home and more than 40% of the cost of a typical multifamily development."
Below, have a look at 10 of the NAHB's deregulatory recommendations.
1. Ability-to-Repay and Qualified Mortgage Standards Under TILA - Final Rule. The Dodd-Frank Act and the final ATR rule define a qualified mortgage as a loan for which, the total points and fees do not exceed three percent of the total loan amount. The CFPB's Final ATR Rule includes closing charges paid to affiliated settlement service providers in the three percent cap on points and fees while the points and fees charged by unaffiliated companies are not included.
Suggested action: Revise the rule to exclude fees and points from affiliated firms in the three percent cap.
2. Technical Assistance for Latest and Zero Building Energy Code Adoption. Section 50131 of the Inflation Reduction Act appropriated $1 billion to influence states and local jurisdictions into adopting unamended model building energy codes.
Suggested action: Suspend further implementation of the funding programs appropriated by Section 50131.
3. Final Rule Resinding Rule TItled Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants Regulations for the Designation of Critical Habitat. Reinstated the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's (FWS's) 2020 critical habitat rules addressing how FWS is to conduct the required economic analysis of proposed critical habitat designations.
Suggested action: Rescind the final rule.
4. Apprenticeship Programs, Labor Standards for Registration, Amendment of Regulations. Revised the regulations under the National Apprenticeship Act (NAA) to address existing skills gaps by expanding the apprenticeship model to include new industries, yet excluded construction from the expansion.
Suggested action: Withdraw the rule and repropose a rule with substantial modifications to remove the severe restrictions on the categories of acceptable registered apprenticeship programs, including those in nontraditional areas like residential construction.
5. Heat Injury and Illness Prevention in Outdoor and Indoor Work Settings. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued a proposed standard that would require employers to create a plan to evaluate and control heat hazards in the workplace.
Suggested action: Rewrite the rule to ensure it creates industry-specific standards, promotes the main tenets of "water, rest and shade" for any construction standard, and exempts construction operations that occur as part of disaster recovery efforts.
6. Defining and Delimiting the Exemptions for Executive, Administrative, Professional, Computer and Outside Sales Employees. Salaried workers classified as executive, administrative, professional, outside sales and computer employees are exempt from overtime pay requirements if a worker earns at or above a defined salary level called the “standard salary.” The salary level for determining the overtime exemption has been in flux over the past three administrations, as each attempted to redefine it. In April 2024, the DOL issued a rule to increase the salary level from $35,568 to $43,888, and then to $58,656 on Jan. 1, 2025, marking a nearly 65% increase from the salary threshold issued before this rule. From that point, the rule contemplates automatic updates every three years using that new methodology.
Suggested action: As a result of the nationwide injunction, the salary level is currently set back to $35,568. DOL should withdraw its appeal to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals and withdraw the rule, and maintain enforcement of the regulation issued in September 2019.
7. Final Determination: Adoption of Energy Efficiency Standards for the New Construction of HUD and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Financed Housing. The Final Determination requires single-family new construction financed with HUD/FHA and USDA to be built to the 2021 International Energy Conservation Code (IECC) and multifamily properties financed with certain HUD programs be built to 2021 IECC or ASHRAE 90.1-2019.
Suggested action: In litigation. Assuming that updates to the IECC are allowed, HUD and USDA should propose an affirmative process rule for the "availability and affordability test" required by Sec. 109, establishing that updates to the energy standards cannot risk decreasing availability or affordability of new construction.
8. The Department of Government Efficiency. The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) was created via Executive Order on January 20, 2025. It is charged with cutting waste, fraud and abuse within the federal government. Doge teams are to be deployed to each federal agency and their affiliates to identify opportunities to streamline operations, cut costs and improve efficiency.
Suggested action: Ensure adequate staffing levels remain in place to support the availability and full functionality of various programs and authorizations so as to not delay or negatively impact new home construction.
9. Zero Energy Ready Home. DOE's Zero Energy Ready Home program is a voluntary program to accelerate the adoption of techniques and technologies to create high-performance, energy efficient buildings. Structures that meet the stringent efficiency and performance criteria and are certified through a qualified third-party may receive a ZERH certificate.
Suggested action: Preserve and expand DOE Zero Energy Ready Homes Revise the DOE Zero Energy Ready Homes program to: Improve design flexibility; Remove the 2021 IECC insulation backstops in favor of the insulation levels of the 2024 IECC; Remove the prevailing wage requirements.
10. ENERGY STAR. ENERGY STAR is an above-code voluntary program administered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) that has educated consumers and facilitated the use of cost-effective energy efficient appliances and technologies for over three decades. Since its inception, it is reported to have saved 5 trillion kilowatt-hours of electricity.
Suggested action: Preserve and expand ENERGY STAR. Revise the ENERGY STAR for Homes program to remove the 2021 IECC insulation backstops in favor of the insulation levels of the 2024 IECC.
Read the entirety of NAHB's deregulatory suggestions here.
