Why It Matters
Across the country, states are revising fire and building codes in an effort to lower construction costs and expand the supply of affordable housing. Maine is among the states that have made changes, and the push is drawing scrutiny from fire safety officials who warn that existing standards were hard-won through past disasters.
What’s Happening
Legislators in dozens of states have moved to ease building requirements over the past several years, with the most common changes centered on allowing low-rise apartment buildings to be constructed with a single stairway rather than two. Additional measures include relaxing elevator installation requirements, rolling back electrical or fire safety standards, and slowing the pace at which local governments must adopt updated codes.
Single-stairway designs are attractive to developers because they allow more units per floor or larger individual units — improvements that can improve a project’s financial viability. Proponents argue the design is both safe and economically practical.
Colorado state Rep. Andrew Boesenecker, a supporter of his state’s legislation, said that single-stairway buildings “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.”
Critics, however, argue that the safety rules currently on the books exist for good reason, shaped by tragedies that exposed the deadly consequences of inadequate exits and fire suppression systems. Connecticut enacted a single-stairway law in 2024, then reversed course after fire safety officials raised objections.
Maine’s Role
Maine has participated in the broader trend by removing certain elevator-related requirements, including some smoke and draft control equipment and two-way emergency video communication systems inside elevator cabs. The changes are part of a wider national reassessment of elevator installation costs, which run between $100,000 and $150,000 in the U.S. and Canada — at least three times the cost of comparable installations in Western Europe or East Asia. In several high-income countries, the same work can be completed for around $50,000.
Washington state has also acted on elevator costs, directing its Building Code Council to permit smaller apartment buildings of up to six stories and 24 units to use less expensive passenger elevators.
Maine’s housing pressures have been a continuing subject of debate. The state has also seen separate legislative activity on broader housing and healthcare access, including a petition campaign targeting universal healthcare that has collected more than 20,000 signatures as advocates push for a 2027 ballot measure.
By the Numbers
19 states and Washington, D.C. introduced legislation between 2022 and 2025 to study or authorize single-stairway apartment buildings.
7 states passed single-stairway bills in 2025 alone, including Colorado, Idaho, and Texas.
16 states currently operate without a statewide building code, giving localities wide discretion over construction standards.
$150,000 is the typical elevator installation cost in the U.S. and Canada, compared to roughly $50,000 in comparable high-income nations.
Zoom Out
The movement reflects a bipartisan consensus that regulatory barriers are contributing to housing shortages and elevated costs. Idaho enacted a law allowing local governments to permit single-stairway apartment buildings up to six stories under specific conditions, including sprinkler systems and limits on units per floor. Texas passed a 2025 law permitting municipalities to authorize single-stairway buildings up to six stories. Colorado requires certain municipalities to modify their codes by December 1, 2027, to allow five-story buildings served by a single exit.
At the federal level, a bipartisan bill known as the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act 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 a proposed update to the multifamily building code that would allow single-stairway buildings to add a fourth story.
Illinois, New York, and Rhode Island each considered similar legislation this year, but none of those bills advanced to passage.
What’s Next
The debate is likely to continue into future legislative sessions as housing affordability remains a top-tier issue in state capitals. Advocates for code reform are pressing the International Code Council to finalize its proposed update, while fire safety organizations are expected to maintain pressure against changes they view as compromising occupant protection. States that have passed laws will begin implementation over the next one to two years, providing early data on both costs and safety outcomes.