Public Comments for: HB368 - Uniform Statewide Building Code; Board of HCD to convene advisory group to evaluate.
I’m Tushar Kansal, Director of the Housing Policy Initiative at The Pew Charitable Trusts. The foremost issue affecting housing costs is a national shortage of 4-7 million homes, including a shortfall of more than 105,000 in Virginia. To address this shortage and improve affordability, some states, like California, Oregon and Washington, have passed laws requiring studies on whether they can safely legalize small apartment buildings of 4-6 stories with one staircase. Being able to build with one staircase instead of using bulkier, two-staircase models means small apartment buildings of those heights can fit on small lots and include family-sized apartments of three or more bedrooms. Wide, deep building layouts that include two staircases and a long corridor prevent apartments from having cross-ventilation or fitting buildings into existing cities and towns with only small lots available. Though the requirement for two staircases and a long corridor stems from concerns about fire safety during an earlier era with more primitive building technology, evidence shows that safety outcomes are no better in places with two-staircase mandates than those without. Countries like Austria, France, and Japan that allow one staircase generally have lower rates of fire death than the U.S. New York City and Seattle allow one staircase for buildings up to six stories, yet New York and Washington states have fewer fire deaths than average, suggesting modern fire-safety measures can make small buildings with one staircase safe. Thank you, and I welcome any questions.
✅ Virginia LCV Bill Positions SUPPORT HB19, HB33, HB357, HB368 OPPOSE HB1363 HB 19 (Ware) - SUPPORT Directs the Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS) to conduct a three-year study of the ecology, fishery impacts, and economic importance of the Atlantic menhaden population in Virginia’s waters. -- Menhaden are a critical species to provide nourishment for other fish targeted by commercial and recreational fishing industries. -- The General Assembly passed SB1388 during the 2023 legislative session, which developed plans for studying menhaden in Virginia’s waters. HB19 would direct VIMS to follow through on conducting the study HB 33 (Clark) - SUPPORT Directs the Commissioner of Health to convene a work group to study the occurrence of microplastics in the Commonwealth's public drinking water. -- As plastic breaks down over thousands of years, it does not go away but rather becomes microplastics–small plastic particles less than five millimeters in size. -- Microplastics are being found in our blood, lungs. Humans consume about a credit card worth of plastic every week. HB 357 (Simonds) - SUPPORT Establishes a work group to evaluate existing approaches to wetland conservation strategies, identify wetlands adaptation areas where tidal wetlands can persist in the landscape, and explore climate’s impact on wetlands’ health and survival. -- Wetlands are among the most productive, diverse, and important ecosystems in Virginia. Both tidal and nontidal wetlands improve water quality, reduce storm damage and flooding, control erosion, provide vital wildlife habitat, and help fight climate change. -- Virginia has already half the wetlands that existed in the 1780s due to development. According to a 2021 report by Climate Central, sea level rise threatens to cause Virginai to lose 42% of existing tidal wetlands by 2100. HB 368 (McClure) - SUPPORT This legislation would convene a stakeholder advisory group to recommend revisions to the Uniform Statewide Building Code regarding allowing multifamily buildings up to 6 stories to be served by a single staircase. -- Changing current regulations to allow single-stair buildings will empower construction of family size apartments and condos more easily and more affordably. -- Single stair construction is used in NYC, Seattle, and across Europe for buildings with a single staircase up to six stories in height. Modern fire safety measures such as fire resistant building materials, sprinkler systems, and secondary fire escapes mitigate fire risk. HB 1363 (O’Quinn) - OPPOSE -- This 2024 legislation is the “study version” of failed attempts in 2022 and 2023 to ban localities from electrifying new building construction–using the same broad language aimed at preventing any local action that “limits, prohibits or has the effect of prohibiting” natural gas service. -- The parameters of the study imply that Virginia’s clean energy transition threatens jobs, revenue, and our national security. -- This study seeks only to measure access to “fuels” methane (natural gas), or propane. It fails to consider whether banks, schools, state and local buildings, transit or telecommunications providers can use non-gas sources to meet their future energy needs. -- Prohibiting building electrification can leave high-density zones vulnerable to gas leaks, result in worsened indoor air quality, and prevent localities from meeting local emissions reductions targets.
HB19 - Vote YES https://vcnva.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/HB19-support.docx.pdf HB28 - Vote YES https://vcnva.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Support-HB28.pdf HB33 - Vote YES https://vcnva.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/HB33-support.pdf HB357 - Vote YES https://vcnva.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/HB357-VCN-support.docx.pdf HB368 - Vote YES https://vcnva.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/HB368-SB195-VCN-support.pdf HB809 - Vote YES https://vcnva.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/HB809-support-Leverage-of-Federal-Funding.docx.pdf HB1363 - Vote NO https://vcnva.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/OPPOSE-HB-1363-OQuinn-1.pdf
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