The House of Representatives recently approved H.R. 320, “CJ’s Home Protection Act” which was introduced by Congressman Brad Ellsworth (D-IL-8th). The legislation would amend the National Manufactured Housing Construction and Safety Standards Act of 1974 to require that weather radios be installed in all manufactured homes in the United States. The bill was inspired by a 2005 tornado that swept through a land lease community in Evansville, Indiana and resulted in numerous deaths in both manufactured homes and other structures.

MHI believes the federal Warning Alert, and Response Network (WARN) Act signed into law in 2006, provides a far superior public alert system as opposed to battery operated weather radios. This Act will ensure that regardless of where individuals are located or what kind of technologies they use, they will receive an audible life-saving alert over their wireless device (cell phones, pagers etc). Alerts will be transmitted in response to all threats to public safety including natural disasters, man-made accidents, and terrorist alerts. MHI supports the WARN Act because it provides for a cohesive system of alerts for everybody in the affected areas, thus avoiding a hodge-podge approach that singles out a small portion of the affected population. H.R. 320 has been referred to the Senate Banking Committee for its consideration. At this writing, no Senate companion bill has been introduced.

MHI members are encouraged to call the Capitol Switchboard at 202-224-3121 or go to www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm and contact their Senators directly to urge them to oppose any bill mandating weather radios for manufactured housing.

MHI’s issue paper on disaster alert systems can be found at
www.manufacturedhousing.org/lib/showtemp_detail01.asp?id=122 0&cat=Legislative.

Source: MHI Week in Review