42 U.S.C. § 5402 — Definitions

Page 6549 TITLE 42—THE PUBLIC HEALTH AND WELFARE § 5402 (5) to protect residents of manufactured homes with respect to personal injuries and the amount of insurance costs and property damages in manufactured housing, consistent with the other purposes of this section; (6) to establish a balanced consensus process for the development, revision, and interpreta- tion of Federal construction and safety stand- ards for manufactured homes and related regu- lations for the enforcement of such standards; (7) to ensure uniform and effective enforce- ment of Federal construction and safety standards for manufactured homes; and (8) to ensure that the public interest in, and need for, affordable manufactured housing is duly considered in all determinations relating to the Federal standards and their enforce- ment. (Pub. L. 93–383, title VI, § 602, Aug. 22, 1974, 88 Stat. 700; Pub. L. 96–399, title III, § 308(c)(4), Oct. 8, 1980, 94 Stat. 1641; Pub. L. 97–35, title III, § 339B(c), Aug. 13, 1981, 95 Stat. 417; Pub. L. 106–569, title VI, § 602, Dec. 27, 2000, 114 Stat. 2997.) Editorial Notes AMENDMENTS 2000—Pub. L. 106–569 amended section catchline and text generally. Prior to amendment, text read as fol- lows: ‘‘The Congress declares that the purposes of this chapter are to reduce the number of personal injuries and deaths and the amount of insurance costs and prop- erty damage resulting from manufactured home acci- dents and to improve the quality and durability of manufactured homes. Therefore, the Congress deter- mines that it is necessary to establish Federal con- struction and safety standards for manufactured homes and to authorize manufactured home safety research and development.’’ 1980—Pub. L. 96–399 substituted ‘‘manufactured home’’ for ‘‘mobile home’’ wherever appearing. Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries EFFECTIVE DATE OF 2000 AMENDMENT Pub. L. 106–569, title VI, § 612, Dec. 27, 2000, 114 Stat. 3012, provided that: ‘‘The amendments made by this title [see Short Title of 2000 Amendment note below] shall take effect on the date of the enactment of this Act [Dec. 27, 2000], except that the amendments shall have no effect on any order or interpretative bulletin that is issued under the National Manufactured Hous- ing Construction and Safety Standards Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 5401 et seq.) and published as a proposed rule pursuant to section 553 of title 5, United States Code, on or before that date of the enactment.’’ EFFECTIVE DATE Pub. L. 93–383, title VI, § 627, formerly § 628, Aug. 22, 1974, 88 Stat. 714, renumbered § 627, Pub. L. 106–569, title VI, § 611(2), Dec. 27, 2000, 114 Stat. 3012, provided that: ‘‘The provisions of this title [enacting this chapter and provisions set out as a note under this section] shall take effect upon the expiration of 180 days following the date of enactment of this title [Aug. 22, 1974].’’ SHORT TITLE OF 2000 AMENDMENT Pub. L. 106–569, title VI, § 601(a), Dec. 27, 2000, 114 Stat. 2997, provided that: ‘‘This title [amending this section and sections 5402 to 5404, 5406, 5407, 5409, 5412 to 5415, 5419, 5422, and 5426 of this title, repealing section 5425 of this title, and enacting and amending provisions set out as notes under this section] may be cited as the ‘Manufactured Housing Improvement Act of 2000’.’’ SHORT TITLE Pub. L. 93–383, title VI, § 601, Aug. 22, 1974, 88 Stat. 700, as amended by Pub. L. 96–399, title III, § 308(c)(5), Oct. 8, 1980, 94 Stat. 1641, provided that: ‘‘This title [enact- ing this chapter and provisions set out as a note under this section] may be cited as the ‘National Manufac- tured Housing Construction and Safety Standards Act of 1974’.’’ SAVINGS PROVISIONS Pub. L. 106–569, title VI, § 613, Dec. 27, 2000, 114 Stat. 3012, provided that: ‘‘(a) STANDARDS AND REGULATIONS.—The Federal manufactured home construction and safety standards (as such term is defined in section 603 of the National Manufactured Housing Construction and Safety Stand- ards Act of 1974 [42 U.S.C. 5402]) and all regulations per- taining thereto in effect on the day before the date of the enactment of this Act [Dec. 27, 2000] shall apply until the effective date of a standard or regulation modifying or superseding the existing standard or regu- lation that is promulgated under subsection (a) or (b) of section 604 of the National Manufactured Housing Con- struction and Safety Standards Act of 1974, as amended by this title [42 U.S.C. 5403(a), (b)]. ‘‘(b) CONTRACTS.—Any contract awarded pursuant to a Request for Proposal issued before the date of the en- actment of this Act [Dec. 27, 2000] shall remain in effect until the earlier of— ‘‘(1) the expiration of the 2-year period beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act; or ‘‘(2) the expiration of the contract term.’’ § 5402. Definitions As used in this chapter, the term— (1) ‘‘manufactured home construction’’ means all activities relating to the assembly and manufacture of a manufactured home in- cluding but not limited to those relating to durability, quality, and safety; (2) ‘‘retailer’’ means any person engaged in the sale, leasing, or distribution of new manu- factured homes primarily to persons who in good faith purchase or lease a manufactured home for purposes other than resale; (3) ‘‘defect’’ includes any defect in the per- formance, construction, components, or mate- rial of a manufactured home that renders the home or any part thereof not fit for the ordi- nary use for which it was intended; (4) ‘‘distributor’’ means any person engaged in the sale and distribution of manufactured homes for resale; (5) ‘‘manufacturer’’ means any person en- gaged in manufacturing or assembling manu- factured homes, including any person engaged in importing manufactured homes for resale; (6) ‘‘manufactured home’’ means a structure, transportable in one or more sections, which, in the traveling mode, is eight body feet or more in width or forty body feet or more in length, or, when erected on site, is three hun- dred twenty or more square feet, and which is built on a permanent chassis and designed to be used as a dwelling with or without a perma- nent foundation when connected to the re- quired utilities, and includes the plumbing, heating, air-conditioning, and electrical sys- tems contained therein; except that such term shall include any structure which meets all the requirements of this paragraph except the size requirements and with respect to which the manufacturer voluntarily files a certifi- cation required by the Secretary and complies Page 6550 TITLE 42—THE PUBLIC HEALTH AND WELFARE § 5402 with the standards established under this chapter; and except that such term shall not include any self-propelled recreational vehicle; (7) ‘‘Federal manufactured home construc- tion and safety standard’’ means a reasonable standard for the construction, design, and per- formance of a manufactured home which meets the needs of the public including the need for quality, durability, and safety; (8) ‘‘manufactured home safety’’ means the performance of a manufactured home in such a manner that the public is protected against any unreasonable risk of the occurrence of ac- cidents due to the design or construction of such manufactured home, or any unreasonable risk of death or injury to the user or to the public if such accidents do occur; (9) ‘‘imminent safety hazard’’ means an im- minent and unreasonable risk of death or se- vere personal injury; (10) ‘‘purchaser’’ means the first person pur- chasing a manufactured home in good faith for purposes other than resale; (11) ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development; (12) ‘‘State’’ includes each of the several States, the District of Columbia, the Common- wealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, the Virgin Is- lands, the Canal Zone, and American Samoa; (13) ‘‘United States district courts’’ means the Federal district courts of the United States and the United States courts of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, the Virgin Islands, the Canal Zone, and American Samoa; (14) ‘‘administering organization’’ means the recognized, voluntary, private sector, con- sensus standards body with specific experience in developing model residential building codes and standards involving all disciplines regard- ing construction and safety that administers the consensus standards through a develop- ment process; (15) ‘‘consensus committee’’ means the com- mittee established under section 5403(a)(3) of this title; (16) ‘‘consensus standards development proc- ess’’ means the process by which additions, re- visions, and interpretations to the Federal manufactured home construction and safety standards and enforcement regulations shall be developed and recommended to the Sec- retary by the consensus committee; (17) ‘‘primary inspection agency’’ means a State agency or private organization that has been approved by the Secretary to act as a de- sign approval primary inspection agency or a production inspection primary inspection agency, or both; (18) ‘‘design approval primary inspection agency’’ means a State agency or private or- ganization that has been approved by the Sec- retary to evaluate and either approve or dis- approve manufactured home designs and qual- ity control procedures; (19) ‘‘installation standards’’ means reason- able specifications for the installation of a manufactured home, at the place of occu- pancy, to ensure proper siting, the joining of all sections of the home, and the installation of stabilization, support, or anchoring sys- tems; (20) ‘‘monitoring’’ means the process of peri- odic review of the primary inspection agen- cies, by the Secretary or by a State agency under an approved State plan pursuant to sec- tion 5422 of this title, in accordance with regu- lations promulgated under this chapter, giving due consideration to the recommendations of the consensus committee under section 5403(b) of this title, which process shall be for the purpose of ensuring that the primary inspec- tion agencies are discharging their duties under this chapter; and (21) ‘‘production inspection primary inspec- tion agency’’ means a State agency or private organization that has been approved by the Secretary to evaluate the ability of manufac- tured home manufacturing plants to comply with approved quality control procedures and with the Federal manufactured home con- struction and safety standards promulgated hereunder, including the inspection of homes in the plant. (Pub. L. 93–383, title VI, § 603, Aug. 22, 1974, 88 Stat. 700; Pub. L. 96–399, title III, § 308(c)(4), (d), Oct. 8, 1980, 94 Stat. 1641; Pub. L. 97–35, title III, § 339B(c), Aug. 13, 1981, 95 Stat. 417; Pub. L. 105–276, title V, § 599A(a), Oct. 21, 1998, 112 Stat. 2660; Pub. L. 106–569, title VI, § 603(a), Dec. 27, 2000, 114 Stat. 2998.) Editorial Notes REFERENCES IN TEXT For definition of Canal Zone, referred to in pars. (12) and (13), see section 3602(b) of Title 22, Foreign Rela- tions and Intercourse. CODIFICATION References to ‘‘mobile homes’’, wherever appearing in text, changed to ‘‘manufactured homes’’ in view of the amendment of title VI of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 (this chapter) by section 308(c)(4) of Pub. L. 96–399 requiring the substitution of ‘‘manufactured home’’ for ‘‘mobile home’’ wherever ap- pearing in title VI of the Housing and Community De- velopment Act of 1974, and section 339B(c) of Pub. L. 97–35 (set out as a note under section 1703 of Title 12, Banks and Banking) providing that the terms ‘‘mobile home’’ and ‘‘manufactured home’’ shall be deemed to include the terms ‘‘mobile homes’’ and ‘‘manufactured homes’’, respectively. AMENDMENTS 2000—Par. (2). Pub. L. 106–569, § 603(a)(1), substituted ‘‘retailer’’ for ‘‘dealer’’. Pars. (14) to (21). Pub. L. 106–569, § 603(a)(2)–(4), added pars. (14) to (21). 1998—Par. (6). Pub. L. 105–276 inserted before semi- colon at end ‘‘; and except that such term shall not in- clude any self-propelled recreational vehicle’’. 1980—Pars. (1), (2), (3). Pub. L. 96–399, § 308(c)(4), sub- stituted ‘‘manufactured home’’ for ‘‘mobile home’’ wherever appearing. Par. (6). Pub. L. 96–399, § 308(c)(4), (d), substituted ‘‘manufactured home’’ for ‘‘mobile home’’, substituted ‘‘in the traveling mode, is eight body feet or more in width or forty body feet or more in length, or, when erected on site, is three hundred twenty or more square feet’’ for ‘‘is eight body feet or more in width and is thirty-two body feet or more in length’’, and inserted exception relating to inclusion of any structure meet- ing all requirements of this paragraph except size and with respect to which a certification is voluntarily filed and standards complied with. Pars. (7), (8), (10). Pub. L. 96–399, § 308(c)(4), sub- stituted ‘‘manufactured home’’ for ‘‘mobile home’’ wherever appearing. Page 6551 TITLE 42—THE PUBLIC HEALTH AND WELFARE § 5403 Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries EFFECTIVE DATE OF 2000 AMENDMENT Amendment by Pub. L. 106–569 effective Dec. 27, 2000, except that amendment has no effect on any order or interpretative bulletin issued under this chapter and published as a proposed rule pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553 on or before Dec. 27, 2000, see section 612 of Pub. L. 106–569, set out as a note under section 5401 of this title. EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1998 AMENDMENT Pub. L. 105–276, title V, § 599A(b), Oct. 21, 1998, 112 Stat. 2660, provided that: ‘‘The amendment made by this section [amending this section] is made on, and shall apply beginning upon, the date of the enactment of this Act [Oct. 21, 1998].’’ EFFECTIVE DATE Section effective upon the expiration of 180 days fol- lowing Aug. 22, 1974, see section 627 of Pub. L. 93–383, set out as a note under section 5401 of this title. § 5403. Construction and safety standards (a) Establishment (1) Authority The Secretary shall establish, by order, ap- propriate Federal manufactured home con- struction and safety standards, each of which— (A) shall— (i) be reasonable and practical; (ii) meet high standards of protection consistent with the purposes of this chap- ter; and (iii) be performance-based and objec- tively stated, unless clearly inappropriate; and (B) except as provided in subsection (b), shall be established in accordance with the consensus standards development process. (2) Consensus standards and regulatory devel- opment process (A) Initial agreement Not later than 180 days after December 27, 2000, the Secretary shall enter into a con- tract with an administering organization. The contractual agreement shall— (i) terminate on the date on which a con- tract is entered into under subparagraph (B); and (ii) require the administering organiza- tion to— (I) recommend the initial members of the consensus committee under para- graph (3); (II) administer the consensus standards development process until the termi- nation of that agreement; and (III) administer the consensus develop- ment and interpretation process for pro- cedural and enforcement regulations and regulations specifying the permissible scope and conduct of monitoring until the termination of that agreement. (B) Competitively procured contract Upon the expiration of the 4-year period beginning on the date on which all members of the consensus committee are appointed under paragraph (3), the Secretary shall, using competitive procedures (as such term is defined in section 132 of title 41), enter into a competitively awarded contract with an administering organization. The admin- istering organization shall administer the consensus process for the development and interpretation of the Federal standards, the procedural and enforcement regulations, and regulations specifying the permissible scope and conduct of monitoring, in accordance with this chapter. (C) Performance review The Secretary— (i) shall periodically review the perform- ance of the administering organization; and (ii) may replace the administering orga- nization with another qualified technical or building code organization, pursuant to competitive procedures, if the Secretary determines in writing that the admin- istering organization is not fulfilling the terms of the agreement or contract to which the administering organization is subject or upon the expiration of the agreement or contract. (3) Consensus committee (A) Purpose There is established a committee to be known as the ‘‘consensus committee’’, which shall, in accordance with this chapter— (i) provide periodic recommendations to the Secretary to adopt, revise, and inter- pret the Federal manufactured housing construction and safety standards in ac- cordance with this subsection; (ii) provide periodic recommendations to the Secretary to adopt, revise, and inter- pret the procedural and enforcement regu- lations, including regulations specifying the permissible scope and conduct of moni- toring in accordance with subsection (b); (iii) be organized and carry out its busi- ness in a manner that guarantees a fair op- portunity for the expression and consider- ation of various positions and for public participation; and (iv) be deemed to be an advisory com- mittee not composed of Federal employ- ees. (B) Membership The consensus committee shall be com- posed of— (i) twenty-one voting members appointed by the Secretary, after consideration of the recommendations of the administering organization, from among individuals who are qualified by background and experi- ence to participate in the work of the con- sensus committee; and (ii) one nonvoting member appointed by the Secretary to represent the Secretary on the consensus committee. (C) Disapproval The Secretary shall state, in writing, the reasons for failing to appoint any individual recommended under paragraph (2)(A)(ii)(I). (D) Selection procedures and requirements Each member of the consensus committee shall be appointed in accordance with selec-