THE HOME BUILDER
September 2023
Page Two
The HomeFront Government Affairs News and Info
David Lehde Director of Government Affairs
Member Participation and a Four-Day What?
and permitting and inspections depart- ments. Our concerns, already offered to two area cities, centers on the impact the shortened week will have, not only on project timelines, trades sequencing and the overall delivery and cost to construction of the home, but also the strain the shortened process puts on city staff and the ability to provide quality inspections. The builder can often lose three or
Relations Committee meeting if you haven’t already. September’s meeting is scheduled for the 14th. Meetings are posted under the Calendar at www. DallasBuilders.org. If you have ques - tions, feel free to contact me at David. Lehde@DallasBuilders.com. Another way you can help is to contribute to HOMEPAC of Greater Dallas, the non-partisan action committee that is an important part of the advocacy toolbox. If you have not participated in the cycle that ends in September, you still have some time to do that. More infor - mation can be found in the Advocacy tab under the Membership section of the aforementioned website. HOMEPAC Shootout, presented by BGE, Inc. The Association is excited to by Rep. Jeff Leach (R) and carried in the Senate by Sen. Phil King (R). HB 2022 makes needed changes to the Residential Claims Liability Act (RCLA). The legislation includes statutory language changes to reflect precedent case law, clarifies that li - ability should only apply to actual home defects, allows for follow-up inspections to allow for the repairs, and increases contractor’s deadline to make an offer of repair by 15 days. Bill also prohibits the contractual waiver of RCLA provisions. The bill helps return RCLA to its true intent. The law became effective on September 1. HB 2024 helps the homeowner by requiring that a written warranty be offered by builders and remodelers in order to reduce the Statute of Repose for latent defects of one and two- fam-
present another fun opportunity for members to assist with our industry’s advocacy efforts. Registration is now open for the HOMEPAC Shootout that will be hosted at the Elm Fork Shooting Sports on Oct. 12. The As - sociation’s clay shoot benefits both HOMEPAC of Greater Dallas and the Association’s issues fund. Partner op- portunities are available. Registration and partner informa- tion can be found in the event listing under the calendar at www.Dallas- Builders.org. Industry Concerns Regarding City Office Schedules Dallas BA has been monitoring area municipalities as a small few have either proposed or transitioned to some form of four-day work weeks for city offices, including in planning
Member Participation Is Key to Our Success If you attended the Aug. 8 Leg - islative Wrap-Up (see separate story below) or have been anywhere near any HBA in Texas, it’s a good chance you heard about the successes the home building industry had during the 88th Texas Legislature. This is the part where I point out that these things don’t happen without our members. This is also the part where I remind you that in order to obtain regulatory success at the local and state level, we need policy makers who understand the need, and are willing to take up positions, for an environment that supports residential construction and development. Your participation in our ad- vocacy efforts is key. You can start by attending our next Government to a deep dive into many of the indus - try’s successes from the 88th Texas Legislature during an Aug. 8 Legisla - tive Wrap-Up, presented by StrucSure Home Warranty. Scott Norman, CEO of the Texas Association of Builders, spoke to a full house about the benefits of both bills that were passed on behalf of home building and, just as importantly, bills that were defeated in an effort to protect attainable housing and the economic benefits it provides to the Lone Star state. Key among the items discussed were Association priority bills that made needed changes to the Residen- tial Claims Liability Act (HB 2022) and the Statute of Repose (HB 2024). Both bills were authored in the House
more days on a project due to the loss of the Friday workday. As inspectors find their time to manage inspections shortened, they can be forced to roll inspections over to the next week, if not cancel the inspection altogether. Weather delays exacerbate this chal- lenge. Contact the Dallas BA’s Director of Government Affairs. with questions or concerns. Members learn about legislative victories Dallas BA members were treated
Scott Norman, CEO of the Texas Association of Builders, speaks to a full house about the benefits of both bills that were passed recently on behalf of home building industry.
ily homes or townhouses (of not less than three stories) to a period of six years. If a builder/remodeler provides a written warranty, the statute of repose (the absolute time a builder could be subjected to litigation for construction defects) would be reduced to a lesser number of years. This change brings Texas in line with many of its peer states that have reduced the times in their similar statutes. With two-thirds majority approval, this law is now in effect as of June 9. Also, among other legislation discussed was HB 3492 (Rep. Lynn Stucky (R), and Sen. Drew Springer (R)). The priority bill of the Dallas BA and TAB prohibits municipalities and counties from considering the cost of
constructing or improving public infra - structure in determining the amount of the inspection fees. Rather, the municipality or county must use the actual cost to review a plan or inspect the infrastructure. Furthermore, the legislation requires the governmental entity to calculate what the actual cost is to provide the inspection and provides entities with a method for determining how to cal- culate these costs. Using the methods outlined in the legislation will lead to reduced fees which will ultimately be passed on to future home buyers. The law became effective on Sept. 1. Dallas BA appreciates the support of StrucSure Home Warranty as we work to keep our members informed about industry advocacy.
The Home Builder is published monthly by the Dallas Builders Association at 5816 W. Plano Pkwy., Plano, Texas 75093. Telephone 972-931-4840. BARCIE VILCHES, Editor
Made with FlippingBook - Online Brochure Maker