More Fairness in the Building Permitting Process

Would it be fair if you jumped through all of the hoops required to get a building permit, only to have the requirements change after you have received the permit? We don’t think so, and luckily Representative R. Neil Walter’s bill, HB 188 now prevents such a scenario from happening.

More specifically, the bill ensures fairness for those in the construction process by stipulating that cities and counties cannot change the permit requirements after a permit has been issued. The bill provides for two logical exceptions — the permit requirements can be changed if the permit holder requests and if the requirement is to ensure the building meets building codes.

A substitute to the bill also added clarifications about operation of tower cranes, all of which seemed useful and constructive. 

Libertas supports legislation that makes the permitting process more fair. We applaud Representative Walter for his bill and for the House Political Subdivisions Committee and Senate Business and Labor Committee for considering and unanimously recommending it. Lastly, we commend the Senate and House of Representatives for passing the bill unanimously.

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About the author

Lee Sands

Lee is the Local Government Policy Analyst at Libertas Institute. He has had a lifelong passion for research, writing, entrepreneurship, local government, and building relationships with people from all walks of life. Before joining Libertas, Lee worked as a technical writer, covered tech and local events as a journalist, developed websites, launched a Kickstarter campaign, and helped businesses create budgets and integrate accounting and other systems. A native of rural northeast Florida, Lee moved to Provo, Utah in 2004. Since graduating from BYU and attending the Vermont College of Fine Arts, Lee has started a family, become increasingly active in local politics as a volunteer, and now joins Libertas to be a resource for elected officials and the general public. Lee enjoys camping, fishing, Jeeping, history, and all things creative and analytical.

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