VACANT RURAL BUILDING ACT

HB 210, the Vacant Rural Building Act, allows small businesses (employing 50 or fewer full-time employees) to occupy vacant commercial buildings in rural municipalities (populations ≤50,000) without full compliance with standard building codes. It requires rural municipalities or the state construction commission to adopt rules by January 2026 that permit variances only for safety-critical issues, excluding non-essential compliance costs. The bill mandates that property owners or businesses must address only life-safety hazards identified by code officials, not all building code requirements. This aims to reduce renovation costs for small businesses while maintaining public safety standards, using historic building code standards as a model. The act directly affects rural municipalities, small business owners, and property owners of vacant commercial buildings.