Committee hears bill to align modular inspection standards for multifamily projects

The Committee on Housing and Economic Development opened public testimony on LD 2229, a committee bill intended to align Maine’s inspection standards for modular and industrialized housing used in multifamily and commercial buildings.

Senator Chip Curry, who introduced the measure, said the bill reflects work from the Housing Production Innovation working group and aims to resolve confusion created by different inspection rules for single‑family manufactured homes and larger modular projects. "This bill solves a problem that was identified by the industrialized housing manufacturers where they have one set of standards for single family dwellings and duplexes and then a different set of standards related to electrical and plumbing for multifamily," he said.

Greg Gilbert, the State Building Official, testified in support of LD 2229 with suggested Mocha (Maine Office of Community Affairs) amendments, describing a regulatory gap when modular units are incorporated into larger buildings and factories produce modules to different code expectations. "I am the state building official in the office of community affairs. I am testifying in support of LD 2229," Gilbert said, and recommended permitting municipalities to keep plan review while allowing third‑party inspections in factories by master electricians and master plumbers with inspection reports sent to local code officials.

Supporters told the committee the bill is a practical fix for projects currently in the pipeline. Phoenix McLolin of the Department of Economic and Community Development said Maine’s existing rules mean ‘‘modular construction for multifamily projects is technically not allowed unless the individual factory workers are licensed as electricians or plumbers’’ — a requirement often incompatible with factory workflows. McLolin said the proposal is a temporary fix pending broader statutory recodification set out in LD 364 and that immediate clarification is needed so active projects can proceed.

The State Fire Marshal, Sean Esler, expressed conditional support but warned the bill as printed risked removing municipal inspection authority for critical on‑site hookups — electrical service connections, water supply, septic or sewer tie‑ins and heating equipment — and urged clearer language to preserve municipal oversight for site installations. "Clarifying that municipal inspection authority continues to apply to on‑site installation and utility connections while avoiding duplication of factory inspections could help prevent confusion in the field," he said.

Industry witnesses said the requirement that individual factory employees hold residential trade licenses has forced costly, duplicative inspections. An electrician who testified identified an 18‑unit Portland project whose costs rose by roughly $60,000 because of that redundancy. Manufacturers and the Manufactured Housing Association of Maine said HUD‑certified third‑party factory inspections already provide quality assurance for HUD‑regulated products and urged the committee to avoid imposing plant‑level master‑trade staffing mandates on manufacturers.

Several municipal and interagency witnesses including the Maine Municipal Association and the Maine Office of Community Affairs said they support the bill’s intent but asked for precise drafting and an agreed format for inspection reports so municipalities receive the information they need to confirm safe site connections.

What’s next: the bill’s sponsors and agency staff told the committee they expect to refine language in a work session to make explicit that factory oversight and third‑party inspections can be used while preserving municipal authority for on‑site utility connections. The committee closed public testimony on LD 2229 and will take up detailed drafting at a subsequent work session.