Hardware Retailing The Industry's Source for Insights and Information
The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) announced it is working with Rep. Nanette Barragán (D-Calif.) on legislation aimed at lowering housing costs by establishing a tariff exemption process for building materials.
The Housing Tariff Exclusion Act (H.R. 10416) would automatically exempt many homebuilding materials from President Trump’s current and future tariffs and give importers a process to seek exemptions for additional materials.
“This bill would help relieve tariff-driven cost pressures on building materials, provide businesses with greater certainty and support broader efforts to improve housing affordability,” says NAHB chairman Bill Owens.
With the nation facing a shortage of roughly 1.2 million homes, NAHB continues to urge the administration to exempt building materials from tariffs, which raise construction costs, disrupt supply chains and make it more difficult for builders to price homes.
Key provisions of the Housing Tariff Exclusion Act include:
- Establishing a Commerce Department process for U.S. businesses to request tariff exclusions for home construction goods.
- Requiring fast-track exemptions for commonly used homebuilding products within 15 days of application.
- Providing objective review of other homebuilding products when tariffs would increase U.S. construction costs.
- Covering all tariffs except anti-dumping, countervailing and safeguard tariffs.
- Allowing businesses to seek reimbursement for tariffs paid before an exclusion is granted.
A companion bill introduced by Sens. Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.) and Chris Coons (D-Del.) is pending in the Senate.
