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Committee approves HB 175 to align certain four‑unit buildings with residential code, citing cost savings
Summary
The committee favorably recommended HB 175 as amended, which allows some four‑unit, two‑story dwellings to be regulated under the residential building code instead of the commercial code — potentially avoiding sprinkler requirements and reducing costs — while sponsors and stakeholders agreed to further technical review.
A Utah House committee on an unspecified date voted unanimously to favorably recommend HB 175, “Housing Construction Amendments,” as amended and sent the bill to the House floor. Representative Ward sponsored the bill.
Representative Ward said the bill aims to reduce housing costs by treating certain four‑unit dwellings (no more than two stories) as residential rather than commercial for building‑code purposes. "One of the things that adds cost to housing ... are the different building codes," Ward said. He told the committee that the amendment clarifies the bill applies only to dwellings of no more than two levels.
Sponsor testimony and public comments focused on fire safety and the costs of compliance. Ward and witnesses contrasted the relatively modest cost of thicker sheetrock as a fire barrier (about $1,000 for the example fourplex) with the larger expense of installing a sprinkler system (about $16,000 for the four units, roughly $4,000 per unit). Ward said the change would be "a 1% difference in the total cost" for an individual unit in one example and argued small reductions add up for affordability.
Carson Eilers, policy director for the Utah League of Cities and Towns, told the committee the amendment improved the underlying language and that building and fire officials were still reviewing minor technical fixes; he characterized those as technical rather than substantive. David Spadafore of the Utah State Fire Chiefs Association said the association supports the bill so long as the dwellings are limited to two stories and that minor tweaks might be needed to ensure egress and other details. Ross Ford of the Utah Home Builders Association also testified in favor, calling the bill "one of the 100,000 tiny little fixes to get us to affordable housing" and saying stakeholders are continuing to work together.
Committee members asked about other code impacts, insurance implications, stair and egress geometry, and the late arrival of amendment language. Ward acknowledged the amendment was posted shortly before the hearing and said he would continue to work with building and fire officials; Tom Peterson, described by the sponsor as a state leader among building inspectors, may weigh in on the House floor, Ward said.
The committee adopted House Amendment 1 to HB 175 and then voted to favorably recommend HB 175 as amended; members recorded no roll‑call votes in the transcript and the chair declared both motions carried unanimously.
The bill proceeds to the House floor. Sponsors and stakeholders said they will continue technical review with fire and building officials.
