Long Awaited Ruling Eases Regulations on Temp Housing - TribPapers
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Long Awaited Ruling Eases Regulations on Temp Housing

Sheds offer supplies and temporary housing. Photo by Christine Robinson.

Asheville – With the weather turning to freezing temperatures, one of the most discussed issues following Hurricane Helene is the challenge of getting people into temporary housing and out of the cold. Rescue and relief organizations have been bringing in campers, building tiny homes, converting sheds, and setting up yurts—hot tents—while government entities seem to be lagging behind.

There have been rumors about challenges in finding locations where these temporary shelters can be set up, with government officials citing building codes and other regulations. Additionally, some individuals wish to stay on their own land but claim they are being denied resources, forcing them to live in tents amid high winds and near single-digit temperatures.

Legislators Ask for Easing of Code Restrictions

Senators Ted Budd and Thom Tillis, along with Representatives Virginia Foxx and Chuck Edwards, penned a letter to President Biden on November 22nd, asking for an easing of FEMA regulations that “prevent the deployment of temporary housing resources in areas prone to flooding.” While this policy is designed to protect the safety of homeowners waiting to return to their homes from the risk of dangerous further flooding, it can also prevent residents from staying on their own property. This makes it more difficult for impacted residents to remain close to family and loved ones, attend school, continue working, and help their communities rebuild. No response from the White House has been received to date.

Temp FEMA Housing Falls Short of Projections

FEMA has provided hotel vouchers to people displaced from their homes, but many had to leave the area to find hotels that would accept them, and the vouchers are set to expire soon. Normally, FEMA would have already delivered mobile homes to the affected area. FEMA did approve 536 households impacted by Helene for temporary move-in ready trailers, called Manufactured Housing Units (MHUs), but two months after the storm, only 57 households have received one, with the majority located in Old Fort. Despite this shortfall in FEMA’s projection for providing housing for the displaced, FEMA was able to set up an encampment with accommodations for up to 750 relief workers, complete with showers, laundry facilities, and a mess hall.

NC State Fire Marshal Announces New Emergency Rule

State Fire Marshal Brian Taylor announced that effective December 10, 2024, the North Carolina Building Code Council (NCBCC) adopted an emergency temporary housing rule to streamline the construction process for temporary housing for North Carolinians displaced by Hurricane Helene. “As winter deepens and temperatures drop—and as FEMA lags behind its prior projection for installation of temporary housing units—many North Carolinians in the counties devastated by Hurricane Helene are without safe and warm shelter,” said Taylor. “Many of our fellow citizens, churches, and charitable organizations have come forward to provide temporary housing to these North Carolinians, but strict adherence to the North Carolina State Building Code and permitting requirements mandated by the North Carolina General Statutes prevents or significantly delays implementation.”

These new rules outline the minimum requirements to address every aspect of constructing safe temporary housing units—from foundations to roof sheathing and from allowed heating appliances to required life safety measures like carbon monoxide and smoke alarms.

Rule Empowers Property Owners

Equipped with these minimum requirements, property owners may now execute an affidavit affirming that the temporary housing structures on their property comply with the emergency rule. This exempts the temporary housing structures from permit and inspection requirements and releases the state and local government from liability for the occupancy and use of the temporary structures. This empowers property owners to construct temporary shelters for themselves and their neighbors without having to comply with strict adherence to the North Carolina State Building Code or wait for overburdened local inspection departments to issue permits.

The OWNER AFFIDAVIT FOR TEMPORARY HOUSING BUILDINGS can be found at: https://www.ncosfm.gov/6-affidavit-temporary-housing-building-emergency-rule/open.