A proposal to establish statewide building energy codes runs into opposition from the people who build the buildings although almost every other state has them, supporters say Missouri could eliminate tons of carbon dioxide going into the air if it had them, and the state could save ten million dollars in energy bills a year if it requires them. St. Louis Senator Joan Bray notes Missouri is one of only nine states without a code and she says federal stimulus money is available for states with building energy standards. Her bill is under study by a Senate committee.
Another supporter says many “green” buildings are being put up now, but many developers are constructing houses as cheaply as possible that are energy INefficient.
But lobbyist Sam Licklider of the Missouri Association of Realtors suggests Bray is getting ahead of things. He says, “You are creating a new building code statewide. (But) you have a lot of jurisdictions without plumbing codes. I think you might want to address those issues before you address the building code issue.”
And a spokesman for the Missouri Home Builders Association says the codes will make homes more expensive and less affordable to thousands of Missourians at a time when the housing market is in a slump.
AUDIO: Committee hearing 21 min MP3
