[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6345 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 6345

To require the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to establish 
  Federal guidelines for point-access block buildings, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            December 1, 2025

  Mr. Torres of New York (for himself and Mr. Lawler) introduced the 
   following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Financial 
                                Services

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To require the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to establish 
  Federal guidelines for point-access block buildings, and for other 
                               purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Point-Access Housing Guidelines Act 
of 2025''.

SEC. 2. FEDERAL GUIDELINES FOR POINT-ACCESS BLOCK BUILDINGS.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 18 months after the date of 
enactment of this section, the Secretary of Housing and Urban 
Development shall issue guidelines to provide States, territories, 
Tribes, and localities with model code language, best practices, and 
technical guidance that could be used to facilitate the permitting of 
point-access block residential buildings.
    (b) Contents.--When developing the guidelines under subsection (a), 
the Secretary shall consider--
            (1) fire safety considerations, including sprinkler 
        coverage, smoke detection, ventilation, and building egress 
        performance;
            (2) construction costs and impacts on housing 
        affordability, including the potential for increasing housing 
        supply in high-cost jurisdictions;
            (3) flexibility for diverse consumer needs, including 
        family sizes, unit configurations, and accessibility;
            (4) examples from jurisdictions that have adopted or 
        considered single-stair codes, including States, cities, and 
        relevant international standards;
            (5) research and model language produced by organizations 
        focused on point-access block building design and building-code 
        reform;
            (6) consultation with experts, including developers, 
        architects, fire marshals, researchers, economists, housing 
        authorities, and officials in States that have enacted or 
        piloted single-stair reforms; and
            (7) alternative methods of compliance, incorporating 
        options that utilize additional passive or active safety 
        features.
    (c) Coordination With the International Code Council.--The 
Secretary shall coordinate with the International Code Council to 
encourage the incorporation of provisions about point-access block 
buildings into the International Building Code.
    (d) Grants.--The Secretary may award competitive grants to eligible 
entities to implement pilot projects that evaluate, demonstrate, or 
validate the safety, feasibility, or cost-effectiveness of point-access 
block residential buildings.
    (e) Rule of Construction.--Nothing in this section may be construed 
to preempt a State or local building code.
    (f) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) Point-access block building.--The term ``point-access 
        block building'' means a Group R-2 occupancy residential 
        structure, as such term is defined by the International 
        Building Code, in which a single internal stairway provides 
        access and egress for all dwelling units in a building that is 
        not greater than five stories in height.
            (2) Eligible entities.--The term ``eligible entity'' means 
        a State, unit of local government, Tribal government, public 
        housing agency, nonprofit housing or community development 
        organization, private developer or construction firm, qualified 
        design or engineering firm, academic or research institution, 
        or any partnership or consortium composed of 2 or more such 
        entities.
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