On Friday morning, the U.S. House of Representatives approved a bill that would get the Department of Energy out of the business of energy standards for mobile homes, also known as manufactured homes, and could set the efficiency requirements back decades.
Advocates say the changes will streamline the regulatory process and keep the upfront costs of manufactured homes down. Critics argue that less efficient homes will cost people more money overall and mostly benefit builders.
“This is not about poor people. This is not about working people,” said Democratic Representative Melanie Stansbury of New Mexico, who grew up in a manufactured home, on the House floor before the vote. “This is about doing the bidding of corporations.”
The average income of a manufactured home resident is around $40,000, and they “already face disproportionately high energy costs and energy use,” said Johanna Neumann, senior director of the Campaign for 100% Renewable Energy at Environment America. That, she said, is why m... Read more
