Miha Peče / Wikimedia Commons
Why It Matters
Across the country, states are loosening building codes in a bid to lower construction costs and expand housing supply — including in Idaho and Washington state, where new laws already allow builders to scale back certain safety features. The changes could make housing more affordable, but fire safety experts warn the tradeoffs carry real risks for future tenants.
What’s Happening
A growing number of states and cities are modifying or rolling back building code requirements as a way to bring down construction costs. The changes range from permitting low-rise apartment buildings to use a single stairway instead of two, to reducing how frequently building codes must be updated, to scaling back electrical and fire safety standards.
Single-stairway designs are at the center of much of the debate. Traditionally, most American apartment buildings above a certain height required two separate stairwells, a fire safety standard dating back decades. Advocates for reform argue that many countries in Western Europe and East Asia build taller residential buildings with a single stair — and do so safely — while also allowing for larger individual units and greater design flexibility.
State Representative Andrew Boesenecker of Colorado has been among the reform advocates, arguing that single-stairway construction “are not only a very safe way to build multi-family housing, they also bring a product to market that’s just not being offered.”
Not everyone agrees. Nicolle Aube, a fire safety professional, acknowledged the cost benefits but cautioned that “by removing these codes and protections, it carries this additional risk for the developer and the occupants of the building if the worst-case scenario happens.”
By the Numbers
- 19 states and Washington, D.C. introduced single-stairway legislation between 2022 and 2025.
- Seven states passed single-stairway laws in 2025 alone.
- Idaho enacted a law permitting local governments to allow single-stairway apartment buildings up to six stories (or five stories with an occupiable roof).
- $150,000 is the approximate cost of elevator installations in the U.S. and Canada, compared to roughly $50,000 in many Western European and East Asian countries — about three times higher.
- 16 states, including Colorado, currently have no statewide building code.
What States Are Doing
Idaho’s new law gives local governments the authority to permit single-stairway apartment construction up to six stories, making it one of several Mountain West states moving in this direction. Texas passed a similar law in 2025, and Colorado enacted legislation requiring certain municipalities to modify their local building codes by December 1, 2027 to allow five-story multifamily buildings with a single exit.
Washington state took a different but related approach — directing its Building Code Council to allow apartment buildings with at most six stories and 24 units to use smaller, less expensive passenger elevators. Maine similarly removed certain elevator-related requirements, including smoke and draft equipment and two-way emergency video communication systems.
At the federal level, a bipartisan measure called the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act is moving through Congress. The bill would direct the Department of Housing and Urban Development to develop model guidelines for single-stairway residential buildings up to six stories.
The International Code Council is also weighing updates to its multifamily building code that would permit single-stairway construction to extend to a fourth story.
One State Pulled Back
Connecticut offers a cautionary note. The state passed a single-stairway law in 2024, only to repeal it in 2025 following objections raised by fire safety officials. The reversal illustrates the tension between housing affordability goals and the concerns of emergency responders who argue that stricter codes exist for good reason.
What’s Next
With seven states having enacted single-stairway laws in the past year alone and federal legislation advancing, the trend toward relaxed building standards shows little sign of slowing. Whether Washington state’s broader housing and economic pressures accelerate further code changes — or whether fire safety objections prompt additional pullbacks like Connecticut’s — will likely play out in statehouses and city councils over the next several years. Idaho’s newly enacted law gives local governments the discretion to decide, leaving the practical outcome in the hands of municipalities across the state.
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