WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Peter Welch (D-Vt.), Ranking Member of the Senate Agriculture Subcommittee on Rural Development, Energy, and Credit, this week joined U.S. Senators Angus King (I-Maine), John Curtis (R-Utah), and Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) in introducing the Build American Efficiency Act, bipartisan, bicameral legislation that would streamline the process for home builders to determine and locate domestically sourced materials that comply with the Build America, Buy American Act (BABA). This small legislative step would help homebuilders cut costs and red tape as they work to address the national housing shortage. 

“Our nation’s housing crisis is an urgent problem, and Congress needs to take action. In Vermont, we’re going to need 36,000 new housing units by 2030 to address our shortage—cutting through red tape that makes it harder to build a home is a major part of helping us close that gap,” said Senator Welch. “The Build American Efficiency Act is a commonsense, bipartisan solution that will help builders construct high-quality homes at a price that families can afford.” 

“Despite our country’s desperate need for additional affordable housing options, American homebuilders face steep costs and bureaucratic red tape,” said Senator King. “The Build American Efficiency Act would empower the Department of Housing and Urban Development to share information to help builders, manufacturers, and housing providers navigate complicated compliance requirements and identify verified American-made products. Eliminating this time-consuming and costly additional step for homebuilders will allow them to build more homes faster. It’s a three-page bill that amounts to a common-sense helping hand.” 

“Utah’s impressive growth has unfortunately brought with it the strain of rising housing costs—which has already been made worse by unnecessary federal red tape,” said Senator Curtis. “This bipartisan bill is a commonsense fix that makes it easier for builders to identify American-made materials, cut through bureaucracy, and get more affordable homes built faster.” 

“I’m committed to using every federal resource available to make building homes in Alaska more streamlined and affordable across the board,” said Senator Murkowski. “This legislation will help identify products that are made in America more easily, cutting through red tape to get more homes built with American-made materials around the country.” 

America’s nationwide housing crisis has hit the state of Vermont especially hard, with median home sale prices surging 40% since 2019. In addition to skyrocketing housing costs, dwindling market supply has made it even tougher for lower-income families—including the nearly 4,000 Vermonters facing homelessness—to purchase a home. Vermont is projected to need an additional 24,000–36,000 housing units by  2030 to replace outdated housing stock and meet demand.  

To accomplish its goals, the Build American Efficiency Act would encourage the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to share industry-led initiatives to certify products and facilities that comply with BABA requirements. The BABA standards were passed in the bipartisanInfrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. More specifically, the Build American Efficiency Act would: 

• Clarify that the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development has the authority to recognize auditable and verifiable systems that document products that comply with Build America, Buy America domestic content requirements; 
• Allow HUD to treat documentation generated under the Make It American Process Standard, or similar standards that provide an auditable and verifiable certification process, as sufficient evidence for domestic content certification; 
• Help manufacturers, builders, and funding recipients more easily determine which products comply with BABA requirements; 
• Reduce time spent navigating waiver requests, duplicative paperwork, and uncertainty over which products have or have not been approved; and 
• Preserve flexibility by ensuring the bill does not mandate the use of any one database or prohibit recipients from using other lawful methods to certify compliance. 

Companion legislation was introduced in the House by Reps. Mark Alford (R-MO-04), Lou Correa (D-CA-46), Tracey Mann (R-KS-01), Johnny Olszewski (D-MD-02), and Brad Finstad (R-MN-01).  

The Build American Efficiency Act is supported by ABB, Alliance for American Manufacturing, Associated General Contractors, Eaton, National Association of Electrical Distributors, National Association of Realtors, National Association of State Housing Agencies, National Electrical Contractors Association, National Electrical Manufacturers Association, Prysmian, Schneider, Siemens, and Southwire. 

Senator Welch has led bipartisan efforts to address Vermont’s affordable housing crisis. Last month, the Senator introduced the Supporting Small Affordable Housing Developers Act, new legislation that would exempt grants supporting affordable housing development from taxation to empower small, rural housing developers to build more affordable housing. 

In March, Senator Welch introduced the bipartisan FARM Home Loans Act to spur rural economic growth by helping more homebuyers qualify for rural housing assistance. The Senator is also a cosponsor of theFirst-Time Homebuyer Tax Credit Act, legislation that aims to support middle-class Americans purchasing their first home, and the End Rent Fixing Act, which would crack down on companies that help landlords increase rents in already high-priced markets. The Senator is also a cosponsor of the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act, which was signed into law earlier this year. 

The Senator’s bipartisan, bicameral HOPE for HOMES Act, which helps lower energy costs for homeowners and reduce greenhouse gas emissions while also investing in the workforce, was included as part of the Biden-Harris Administration’s historic Inflation Reduction Act. 

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