Business View - August 2015 81
as they can see a return on their power bills.
NAHB also surveyed home builders about the features
they are most likely to include in new homes they build
this year. Four of the top 10 features focused on en-
ergy efficiency: low-E windows, Energy Star-rated appli-
ances and windows and programmable thermostats.
Some home buyers are looking for even more sus-
tainable features, prompting an increasing number of
single-family and multifamily builders to deliver green
homes. Green builders incorporate energy, water and
resource efficiency; improved indoor environmental
quality and sustainable and locally sourced products
into their projects.
An NAHB survey of single-family home builders re-
vealed that nearly 25 percent of builders installed
alternative energy-producing equipment in new con-
struction. This includes geothermal heat pumps and
photovoltaic solar panels. The current 30-percent tax
credit available for homeowners who install this equip-
ment is set to expire at the end of 2016, which makes
this a good time for interested buyers to consider pur-
chases.
Home buyers can access home buying and home
building information and resources at nahb.org/for-
consumers.
Study: OSHA Underestimated Cost of Silica Rule by
$4.5 Billion a Year
A new report released by the Construction Industry
Safety Coalition (CISC) found that the Occupational
Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) proposed
silica standards for the U.S. construction industry will
cost the industry $5 billion per year—roughly $4 .5 bil-
lion per year more than OSHA’s estimates. The coali-
tion cautioned that the flawed cost estimates reflect
deeper flaws in the rule and urged the federal agency
to reconsider its approach.
OSHA’s proposed rule, intended to drastically reduce
the permissible exposure limit (PEL) of crystalline sil-
ica for the construction industry, has been underesti-
mated by the Agency to cost the construction industry
about $511 million a year. The new estimates released
today by CISC estimate that the costs to the industry
John Grau,
NECA’s CEO
CONSTRUCTION
