In a news release from the Building Industry Association of Clark County (BIA), the organization said they were “disappointed” with Washington Gov. Jay Inslee’s veto of the Washington State Building Code Councils’ decision to delay the state building and energy code from Feb. 1 to July 1, 2021. The association said that with less than two weeks until the new codes take effect, builders will have to “scramble to educate themselves and comply.”
The association stated that the BIA is disappointed in the veto because the code changes will “add an average of $15,000 to $20,000 to the cost of a newly constructed home.”
During a time when home prices are rocketing upward due to demand caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and low interest rates, the BIA said this is “the absolute worst time to institute new and costly building codes” due to labor and supply chain disruptions and historically low inventory of homes.
