How the North Carolina Legislature Left Homes Vulnerable to Helene

After every major disaster there is always much second guessing as to what have been done differently to minimize tragic consequences.  Hurricane Helene unleashed 1000 year flooding in parts of western North Carolina that perhaps nothing could have stopped, but as a piece in the New York Times is reporting, some of the suffering now wide spread in western North Carolina could have perhaps been reduced but for the Republican controlled legislatures efforts to weaken building standards and flood zone requirements in exchange for campaign contributions from the home builders association and its members.  One of the GOP's constant mantras is that regulations need to be reduced or eliminated so as to benefit big business.  Sadly, many such targeted regulations are aimed at safety and reducing the potential loss of life.  Ironically, during the Vice Presidential debate on Tuesday, JD Vance stated that Donald Trump supports clean air and clean water, yet during his term in the White House Trump sought to undermine clean air and clean water standards and regulations to please large donors thus exposing the lie of Vance's statement. No doubt blame and recriminations will go on for a long time, but there is a real need to focus on the harm the GOP's anti-regulations agenda can unleash.  Here are article excerpts:

The amount of rain that Tropical Storm Helene unleashed over North Carolina was so intense, no amount of preparation could have entirely prevented the destruction that ensued.

But decisions made by state officials in the years leading up to Helene most likely made some of that damage worse, according to experts in building standards and disaster resilience.

Over the past 15 years, North Carolina lawmakers have rejected limits on construction on steep slopes, which might have reduced the number of homes lost to landslides; blocked a rule requiring homes to be elevated above the height of an expected flood; weakened protections for wetlands, increasing the risk of dangerous storm water runoff; and slowed the adoption of updated building codes, making it harder for the state to qualify for federal climate-resilience grants.

Those decisions reflect the influence of North Carolina’s home building industry, which has consistently fought rules forcing its members to construct homes to higher, more expensive standards, according to Kim Wooten, an engineer who serves on the North Carolina Building Code Council, the group that sets home building requirements for the state.

“The home builders association has fought every bill that has come before the General Assembly to try to improve life safety,” said Ms. Wooten, who works for Facilities Strategies Group, a company that specializes in building engineering. She said that state lawmakers, many of whom are themselves home builders or have received campaign contributions from the industry, “vote for bills that line their pocketbooks and make home building cheaper.”

In 2009 and 2010, lawmakers from the state’s mountainous western region wanted statewide rules to restrict construction on slopes with a high or moderate risk of landslides. Their legislation failed in the face of pushback from the home building and real estate industries, according to Pricey Harrison, a state lawmaker who supported the restrictions.

The push to build on hillsides reflected the growing demand in North Carolina for mountain retreats that would attract tourist dollars, according to Robert S. Young, a professor at Western Carolina University who focuses on climate resilience.

“Everybody wants a view in their vacation home,” Dr. Young said in an interview. “It’s really hard to shut off that kind of economic activity in a small local community.”

Efforts to weaken building standards in North Carolina picked up steam after Republicans won control of both houses of the state legislature in 2010.

In 2011, lawmakers proposed a law that limited the ability of local officials to account for sea-level rise in their planning. The comedian Stephen Colbert panned the change, quipping: “If your science gives you a result you don’t like, pass a law saying the result is illegal. Problem solved.”

Two years later, lawmakers overhauled the way North Carolina updates its building codes. That change attracted far less attention than the sea-level rule — but would be more consequential for Helene.

Every three years, the International Code Council, a nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C., issues new model building codes developed by engineers, architects, home builders and local officials.

Most states adopt a version of those model codes, which reflect the latest advances in safety and design. But in 2013, the North Carolina legislature decided that the state would update its codes every six years, instead of every three.

The change proved important. In 2015, the International Code Council added a requirement that new homes in flood zones be built at least one foot above the projected height of a major flood. . . . . the state stripped out the new flood-prevention standard. Rather than make elevation mandatory in flood zones around North Carolina, the state decided that the requirement should only apply if local officials chose to adopt it.

The decision most likely left more homes exposed to flooding, according to Chad Berginnis, executive director of the national Association of State Floodplain Managers.

The Republican legislature took other steps that may have exacerbated flooding.

In 2014, lawmakers passed laws to weaken protection for wetlands, which can help reduce flood damage by absorbing excess rainfall, according to Brooks Rainey Pearson, a senior attorney at the Southern Environmental Law Center.

Three years later, the legislature made it easier for developers to pave green spaces, increasing the risk of flooding caused by heavy rains, according to the Southern Environmental Law Center.

The legislature passed a law that blocked the state from adopting new building codes until 2031. The law also included smaller changes, such as preventing local building inspectors from ensuring that home builders correctly install protective sheathing on homes exposed to winds of 140 miles per hour or less.

Governor Cooper vetoed the bill, saying it would “wipe out years of work to make homes safer.” But Republicans overrode his veto.

Building standards will help determine how well that new construction fares against future disasters, which are becoming more frequent and severe because of climate change.

Ms. Wooten, the engineer on the building code council, said she was not optimistic that the damage from Helene would change how North Carolina approached building codes.

“Money talks,” Ms. Wooten said. “Politicians want to get re-elected, and they are going to go where the money is.”