,i  #aaith ,,congress  #ast ,session    
,h4 ,r4 #fcde  ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of  
,,representatives  ,december #a1        
#bjbe,mr4 ,torres of ,new ,york 7for    
himself and ,mr4 ,lawler7 introduced the
 following bill2 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 buildings1 and for   
other purposes4  #a4 ,short title ,this 
,act may be cited as the ,point-,access 
,housing ,guidelines ,act of #bjbe4  #b4
 ,federal guidelines for point-access   
block buildings  7a7 ,in general ,not   
later than #ah months after the date of 
enactment of this section1 the          
,secretary of ,housing and ,urban       
,development shall issue guidelines to  
provide ,states1 territories1 ,tribes1  
and localities with model code language1
 best practices1 and technical guidance 
that could be used to facilitate the    
permitting of point-access block        

residential buildings4  7b7 ,contents   
,when developing the guidelines under   
subsection 7a71 the ,secretary shall    
consider-- 7#a7 fire safety             
considerations1 including sprinkler     
coverage1 smoke detection1 ventilation1 
and building egress performance2  7#b7  
construction costs and impacts on       
housing affordability1 including the    
potential for increasing housing supply 
in high-cost jurisdictions2  7#c7       
flexibility for diverse consumer needs1 
including family sizes1 unit            
configurations1 and accessibility2  7#d7
 examples from jurisdictions that have  
adopted or considered single-stair      
codes1 including ,states1 cities1 and   
relevant international standards2  7#e7 
research and model language produced by 
organizations focused on point-access   
block building design and building-code 
reform2  7#f7 consultation with experts1
 including developers1 architects1 fire 
marshals1 researchers1 economists1      
housing authorities1 and officials in   

,states that have enacted or piloted    
single-stair reforms2 and  7#g7         
alternative methods of compliance1      
incorporating options that utilize      
additional passive or active safety     
features4  7c7 ,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 ,code4  7d7 ,grants ,the      
,secretary may award competitive grants 
to eligible entities to implement pilot 
projects that evaluate1 demonstrate1 or 
validate the safety1 feasibility1 or    
cost-effectiveness of point-access block
 residential buildings4  7e7 ,rule of   
construction ,nothing in this section   
may be construed to preempt a ,state or 
local building code4  7f7 ,definitions  
,in this section3  7#a7  ,point-access  
block building  ,the term point-access  
block building means a ,group ,r-#b     

occupancy residential structure1 as such
 term is defined by the ,international  
,building ,code1 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 height4  7#b7 ,eligible      
entities ,the term eligible entity means
 a ,state1 unit of local government1    
,tribal government1 public housing      
agency1 nonprofit housing or community  
development organization1 private       
developer or construction firm1         
qualified design or engineering firm1   
academic or research institution1 or any
 partnership or consortium composed of  
#b or more such entities4