Home Builders Association warns that new residential code will raise costs; files intent to sue over process

Don Crandall, executive vice president for government relations at the Michigan Home Builders Association, told the House Regulatory Reform Committee about recent changes in the state residential code process and the association's objections to the 2021 Michigan Residential Code (MRC) and the related Part 10 energy provisions.

Crandall summarized the change in process: model codes are developed by the International Code Council and historically Michigan used advisory committees of practitioners to review, amend and recommend state adoption. He said the state's Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA) now uses a streamlined internal process that reduced stakeholder committee steps and instead relies on the department and a board chair to review draft rules before submission to the Office of Policy and Legislative Affairs.

The Home Builders Association's concerns, Crandall said, focus on…