It has a catchy name — Build America, Buy America — and the goal of bringing manufacturing jobs back to the United States.
But the law has spurred a bottleneck for affordable housing.
Nearly everything from HVACs and lighting to sink hooks and ceiling fans in affordable housing projects that get federal dollars must carry the Made in the USA label. But, developers say, numerous products do not, as they have long been imported from overseas markets with cheaper labor costs.
Although builders can apply for waivers, the process has been at a near standstill as the Department of Housing and Urban Development has only greenlit a handful of projects.
The waiver process has caused construction delays and hundreds of thousands of dollars in extra costs as the country faces an affordable housing crisis.
President Joe Biden signed the Build America, Buy America Act as part of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act in 2021. Known as BABA, it applies to infrastructure projects funded by federal agencies, not just affordable housing.
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