Accessibility links Skip to main content Keyboard shortcuts for audio player Open Navigation Menu Newsletters NPR Shop Get NPR+ Close Navigation Menu Home News Expand/collapse submenu for News National World Politics Business Health Science Climate Race Culture Expand/collapse submenu for Culture Books Movies Television Pop Culture Food Art & Design Performing Arts Life Kit Gaming Music Expand/collapse submenu for Music Tiny Desk New Music Friday All Songs Considered Music Features Podcasts & Shows Expand/collapse submenu for Podcasts & Shows Daily Morning Edition Weekend Edition Saturday Weekend Edition Sunday All Things Considered Up First Here & Now NPR Politics Podcast Featured Wait Wait...Don't Tell Me! Fresh Air Wild Card with Rachel Martin It's Been a Minute Embedded Get NPR+ More Podcasts & Shows Search Newsletters NPR Shop Get NPR+ Tiny Desk New Music Friday All Songs Considered Music Features About NPR Diversity Support Careers Press Ethics A law requiring U.S.-made materials is slowing the construction of affordable homes A law requires builders to use American-made construction materials if they want to get certain federal funds. It's slowing affordable housing construction. National A law requiring U.S.-made materials is slowing the construction of affordable homes September 17, 20264:44 AM ET Heard on Morning Edition By Nicole Ogrysko A law requiring U.S.-made materials is slowing the construction of affordable homes Listen · 3:29 3:29 Transcript Toggle more options Download Embed Embed "> <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/nx-s1-5930685/nx-s1-9929801" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript A law requires builders to use American-made construction materials if they want to get certain federal funds. It's slowing affordable housing construction. Sponsor Message Transcript
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Rules that were meant to help American manufacturing are slowing construction. Five years ago, Congress mandated that builders use U.S.-made materials for things such as roads, bridges and affordable housing in order to get federal funds. Maine Public's Nicole Ogrysko reports.
NICOLE OGRYSKO, BYLINE: Tyler Norod stands on an abandoned lot in Biddeford, a small city south of Portland. The pavement is cracked and overgrown with weeds. The former mill town has been revitalizing itself in recent years. Norod says his nonprofit development company plans to build a few dozen affordable apartments on this lot.
TYLER NOROD: So these piles of dirt and old foundations over here to our left were back in that corner.
OGRYSKO: By now, Norod says he hoped the site would have been buzzing with activity. But instead, it's quiet because federal requirements now in effect have brought the project to a standstill.
NOROD: Right now, we would be lucky to break ground - if we can even break ground at all - by the end of the year. And more likely into 2027.
OGRYSKO: That's because of the Build America, Buy America mandate. It requires developers who've received certain federal housing funds to source 95% of their construction materials from domestic manufacturers. While there are a few hundred components that go into building a bridge or a highway, there are thousands of items that go into constructing a typical apartment building. Housing developers must track and confirm the origin of each one. And some components are just not made in the United States at all, leaving developers to hunt for things like...
LAURA READING: Door hardware - a little bit of elevators. We've ended up finding one that is compliant.
OGRYSKO: Laura Reading is developing affordable apartments with a childcare facility in downtown Portland. She says her project got held up when they couldn't find a certain American-made heating and air conditioning system. So last fall, she asked the federal government for a waiver that will allow her to use a foreign-made system. It got approved eight months later.
READING: There's this desperate need for affordable housing. And so the longer that that gets put off, the longer these families are experiencing some form of housing instability.
OGRYSKO: By one estimate, the United States faces a shortage of roughly 7 million homes that are affordable to Americans at the federal poverty line or lower. To keep rents low, every dollar counts. Developers have historically relied on federal grants to make their financing work. But Jennifer Schwartz with the National Council of State Housing Agencies says some developers have decided it's not worth it because of the Build America requirements.
JENNIFER SCHWARTZ: Some that have taken these funds are now turning them back because they're realizing that the cost of compliance sometimes even exceeds the value of that grant.
OGRYSKO: Builders and state housing agencies have appealed to Congress and the Trump administration for solutions, but so far, there hasn't been a quick fix. Tyler Norod says his nonprofit will continue to develop affordable housing in Southern Maine, but he worries Build America challenges could deter others from getting into the business at all.
NOROD: I'm just hoping that the folks in D.C. will listen to us on the ground that are just trying to do what everyone right now is asking of us, which is to build more housing that Americans can afford.
OGRYSKO: The Trump administration did not respond to multiple requests for comment about the Build America requirements.
For NPR News, I'm Nicole Ogrysko in Portland, Maine. Copyright © 2026 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information. Accuracy and availability of NPR transcripts may vary. Transcript text may be revised to correct errors or match updates to audio. Audio on npr.org may be edited after its original broadcast or publication. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record. NPR does not offer or accept money for coverage or interviews. Anyone who makes such an offer or request is not an NPR employee and does not represent NPR. Facebook Flipboard Email Read & Listen Home News Culture Music Podcasts & Shows Connect Newsletters Facebook Instagram Press Public Editor Corrections Transcripts Contact & Help About NPR Overview Diversity NPR Network Accessibility Ethics Finances Get Involved Support Public Radio Sponsor NPR NPR Careers NPR Shop NPR Extra Terms of Use Privacy Your Privacy Choices Text Only Sponsor Message Sponsor Message Become an NPR sponsor (function () { var loadPageJs = function () { (window.webpackJsonp=window.webpackJsonp||[]).push([[22],{314:function(e,n,o){o.p=NPR.serverVars.webpackPublicPath,Promise.all([o.e(1),o.e(2),o.e(3),o.e(4),o.e(80)]).then((e=>{o(15),o(772),o(156),o(177),o(95),o(451),o(257),o(131),o(133),o(758),o(176),o(759),o(258),o(80),o(777)}).bind(null,o)).catch(o.oe)},786:function(e,n,o){e.exports=o(314)}},[[786,0]]]); }; if (document.readyState === 'complete') { loadPageJs(); } else { window.addEventListener('load', function load() { window.removeEventListener('load', load, false); loadPageJs(); }); } })();