NAHB Lauds Reps. Newhouse and McMorris Rodgers for Deeming Housing as ‘Essential’

Advocacy
Published

NAHB today commended the efforts of Reps. Dan Newhouse (R-Wash.) and Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.) to urge Washington Governor Jay Inslee to include residential construction as "essential" under the state’s “Stay Home, Stay Healthy” order.

“The need to provide safe, affordable housing is especially acute during this pandemic. We applaud the efforts of Reps. Newhouse and McMorris Rodgers to allow the men and women in Washington state’s housing industry to be able to stay on the job and provide badly needed housing during this time of crisis,” said NAHB Chairman Dean Mon.

Most states that have issued stay-at-home orders have deemed residential construction essential, and the Department of Homeland Security has designated the construction of single-family and multifamily housing as an Essential Infrastructure Business. However, Gov. Inslee has excluded residential construction as an essential service in his state, keeping these workers at home.

As residential construction workers from other parts of the country remain on the job, their health and safety is a top priority for NAHB. To ensure the safety of workers, NAHB and our construction industry partners have developed a Coronavirus Preparedness and Response Plan specifically tailored to construction job sites. The plan is customizable and covers areas that include manager and worker responsibilities, job site protective measures, cleaning and disinfecting, responding to exposure incidents, and OSHA record-keeping requirements.

Moreover, NAHB is urging members, and all residential construction companies, to halt work for at least 10 minutes on Thursday, April 16, for a COVID-19 Job Site Safety Stand Down to educate workers on what they should do to keep themselves safe from coronavirus and to help "flatten the curve" for everyone.

Builders on construction sites across the nation are altering their normal behavior and strictly following public health guidelines while at work. These safety precautions include maintaining a distance of no less than six feet with others at all times, cleaning and sanitizing frequently used tools, equipment and frequently touched surfaces on a regular basis, and ensuring the proper sanitation of common surfaces and equipment.

“Residential construction workers across the nation have clearly demonstrated that by exercising proper precautions they can continue to remain safely on the job and provide much-needed housing,” said Mon. “I urge Gov. Inslee to follow the lead of Reps. Newhouse and McMorris Rodgers, and allow Washington state home builders to get back to work to produce, safe, affordable homes for their fellow citizens in this time of need.”

Subscribe to NAHBNow

Log in or create account to subscribe to notifications of new posts.

Log in to subscribe

Latest from NAHBNow

Trends

Oct 29, 2025

Do Consumers Want Two-Story Foyers?

Nearly a quarter of new homes were built with a two-story foyer in 2024 — a number that has been trending downward over the past eight years. Though the national decline continued, regional patterns were mixed. See where this feature is hot — and where it's not.

Certified Aging-in-Place Specialist (CAPS) | Education

Oct 29, 2025

How to Market to and Design for the Aging-in-Place Client

NAHB will host three webinars (open to members and non-members) in November to teach the technical, business management, and customer service skills necessary to complete modifications for aging-in-place.

View all

Latest Economic News

Economics

Oct 29, 2025

The Fed Cuts amid Partly Cloudy Conditions

With the government shutdown limiting the quantity of economic data available to markets and policymakers, the central bank’s Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) enacted a widely anticipated 25 basis point cut for the short-term federal funds rate.

Economics

Oct 28, 2025

Home Price Growth Slows

Home prices in August grew at the lowest annual rate in over two years, according to the recent release of the S&P Cotality Case-Shiller Home Price Index (seasonally adjusted – SA).

Economics

Oct 27, 2025

Two-Story Foyer Trend Stabilizes in 2024

In 2024, nearly a quarter of new homes were built with a two-story foyer, virtually unchanged from 2023, according to data obtained from the Census Bureau’s Survey of Construction (SOC) and tabulated by NAHB.