Recent Legal Action Fund Grants Help NAHB Members and HBAs in Big Cases

At the 2024 Fall Leadership Meeting, the NAHB Legal Action Committee recommended financial assistance through the Legal Action Fund for five cases, which the Board approved at its meeting.

Each case addresses an issue of national significance or a question that poses a common problem for NAHB members.

Land Use and Zoning Issues in Ohio

An NAHB member in Tallmadge, Ohio, owns large parcels of farmland, including a 124-acre tract. They worked with the city to create an R-6 zoning classification for high-density housing and applied to rezone their property.

Despite meeting all requirements, the city council denied the application because of local opposition to smaller lot sizes. The city council subsequently eliminated the R-6 zoning designation entirely.

The landowner filed a lawsuit in the Northern District of Ohio, claiming a regulatory taking without just compensation, violation of equal protection, and retaliation. NAHB's Legal Action Fund Grant will allow them to pursue a favorable judgment at the trial court or appellate court.

Land Use and Exaction Issues in Alabama and California

NAHB members in Alabama and California each won grants to support their challenges to the calculation and application of development impact fees that go beyond their stated purpose.

In Alabama, a developer is challenging disproportionate and unjustified fees along with unfair and unreasonable land use regulations that are driving up development costs and stunting the housing supply.

Since 2019, California has been seeking answers from the city of Coachella on its fee calculation, use and distribution of collected development impact fees. The NAHB member involved in the litigation argues that the city of Coachella is violating the state's Mitigation Fee Act.

In each instance, NAHB's Board recognized that continued delays in settling these matters are being used to stunt housing growth, as well as exhaust judicial support, and the grants will be used to advance the cases to conclusion.

Climate Change Regulation in Georgia

Georgia is ramping up to implement zero-emission requirements for homes that conflict with federal appliance standards. An NAHB member hopes to staunch the flow of regulatory overreach from spreading to other states.

NAHB's Board recognized that without the support of the Legal Action Fund grant program, state and local regulations that exceed federal standards of compliance could potentially create financial and operational hardships on manufacturers, builders and ultimately home buyers.

Labor and Worker Classification in Minnesota

At the end of the 2024 state legislative session, Minnesota's independent contractor law was amended to include a new 14-factor test.

Currently, independent contractors are excluded from the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA). This law would reclassify certain independent contractors into employees, upsetting many of the industry norms for hiring and managing subcontractors on building sites.

The 14-factor test replaces the old nine-factor test, and gives the state broader enforcement powers, expanded stop work authority across all jobs, higher penalty fees, and rigorous compliance with extended tax filing and reporting. These requirements not only put additional burdens on NAHB builder members but also violate federal labor law principles under the NLRA.

NAHB Board's approval of this challenge recognized that if this law is implemented nationally, it could unnecessarily and punitively stop work on many construction sites.

NAHB will next consider Legal Action Fund applications at the International Builders' Show in Las Vegas Feb. 25-27. Applications are due Wednesday, Feb. 5.

Public link

Please use the above public link if you want to share this noodl on another website.