U.S. President Trump and Tariffs   

President Trump is back and forth on his threat to impose 25% tariffs on Canada following his inauguration. On one hand, he is saying they may come into place February 1, however he also issued a broad trade memo that stops short of imposing new tariffs on his first day in office, and instead directs federal agencies to evaluate U.S. trade relationships with China, Canada and Mexico. CHBA remains active on this file either way, in case the new president decides to proceed with tariffs. That is why, in addition to CHBA CEO Kevin Lee testifying on the impacts of the U.S. softwood lumber trade for residential construction last month, CHBA has formally opposed retaliatory tariffs on construction products and materials in a letter to federal Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly; CHBA has also been engaged with officials in the public service to inform them of the impacts of tariffs on the home construction sector. At the same time, CHBA is engaged with the heads of other associations who would similarly be impacted by any increase in tariffs, collaborating on advocacy in support of the industry.  

CHBA Moves into Federal Election Mode with Prorogation of Parliament and Liberal Leadership Race

In the first week of January, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced that he was granted prorogation of Parliament during which time the Liberal Party of Canada would select a new leader. Prorogation means all parliamentary activity, including legislation and committee work, is suspended until March 24th. Members of Parliament are released from their parliamentary duties and return to their constituencies. This prorogation means that CHBA’s Day on the Hill won’t happen in February because MPs will not be in Ottawa, and CHBA has shifted into pre-election preparation. From an advocacy standpoint, CHBA has strong relationships with all major parties and regular meetings, committee appearances, and correspondence have ensured that MPs and party leadership are aware of industry concerns and recommendations.

Policy Win for Members Reducing Burden of Regulation       
For over a year, CHBA closely followed the Fighting Against Forced Labour and Child Labour in Supply Chains Act that initially imposed reporting obligations on large builders and developers regarding risks of exploitative labour in supply chains. While these policies are needed and well-intentioned, builders/developers largely do not have oversight over the building material supply chains to adequately assess these risks, and from the outset CHBA recommended that they be excluded from the annual reporting obligations. After months of diligent follow-up by CHBA, Public Safety responded to the recommendation and updated its guidelines to explicitly exclude real property from the types of “goods producing” entities that are obligated to report. While this change removes future reporting obligations for many builders that complied in the 2024 reporting year, obligations could remain for those that import goods directly or have a controlling interest in other businesses. For questions or additional information about this, please visit this industry issues webpage and/or contact Evan Andrade, CHBA’s Economist. 

Get Ready for Tiered Codes: New Training Rebate Program Helping You Prepare  

CHBA has launched a 3-year NRCan funded project called Enabling Tiered Codes – Implementation and Market Preparedness to help prepare the industry for future building codes and help CHBA inform the code development process with builder insights. To support the project objective of building industry competency, CHBA is offering $330 rebates for select courses. Please note that the rebates are only available to CHBA members who pass the exam. For more information about this funded project and links to register for the training, please visit this page!

Proposed Code Change to Mandate Mechanical Cooling in all Homes  

The Canadian Board for Harmonized Construction Codes (CBHCC) is seeking public input on a single proposed change form (PCF 2061) to the 2020 National Building Code of Canada, which addresses the overheating of new dwelling units. The review period is from January 20 to February 24, 2025. This is the second time that the CBHCC consults on this change because of significant revisions to the original proposal. While the first proposal requiring only one air-conditioned room per home – a code change already implemented in British Columbia – was deemed not workable, the revised national proposal would mandate mechanical cooling in the entire home in all locations with a July Design Temperature warmer than 26°C. CHBA’s Technical Research Committee reviewed the draft proposal at the 2024 fall meetings, and CHBA members and staff worked with governments, HVAC designers and energy advisors to identify the implications of this change, which members are concerned would increase costs significantly in regions that already have a considerable housing affordability challenge and that it might strain heat pump installer capacity even more in some regions as well as. Members also voiced concerns that the cooling load implications were significant for compliance with the higher tiered energy targets. For more information, or if you want CHBA staff to include your comments in our submission, please contact Frank Lohmann.

2024 CHBA Activities Wrap Up  

CHBA has had a busy year supporting your business, whether it was by putting industry issues front and centre in media to get policy change, spending thousands of staff hours engaging with the federal government, and growing important CHBA initiatives to support members like you. And of course, all of it was made possible thanks to volunteer members and the support of our Alliance Network. Check out the video to see highlights from last year. The new year has started fast and furious, so get ready for a busy 2025.