The Manufactured Housing Association for Regulatory Reform i(MHARR) informs MHProNews that it has exposed an attempt by the federal manufactured housing program to increase the influence of a monitoring contractor over HUD Code homes for the Federal Emergency Management System (FEMA). This “rogue” inspection set-up, as MHARR calls it, duplicates the work of HUD’s MH regulatory system, but circumvents “legal restrictions on the role and influence of contractors within that HUD system.”

MHARR has asked FEMA to terminate this contract because FEMA homes have already been through a rigorous inspection by HUD.

MHARR points out it has been less than a year since the same HUD monitoring contractor subcontracted for dispute resolution services within the HUD program, circumventing the “separate and independent contractors” provision of the Manufactured Housing Improvement Act of 2000. When HUD failed to act, MHARR appealed to Congress which terminated the contract by HUD in May 2015.

MHARR maintains that HUD’s failure to fully comply with the 2000 reform law has led to a “rogue” regulatory system that would increase compliance costs of manufactured homes, and thereby consumers. ##

(Image credit: Manufactured Housing Association for Regulatory Reform)

Article submitted by Matthew J. Silver to Daily Business News-MHProNews.