‘Common issues and common problems’ [The Daily Citizen, Dalton, Ga.]

Dec. 28--DALTON -- Dalton construction company owner Stanley Richardson recalls a few years ago when a member of the state House of Representatives introduced a bill that would have mandated that upstairs windows in homes have ladders attached to them.

"He had good intentions. He wanted people to be able to get out of a house if it burned. But, like a lot of people, he was looking at something with tunnel vision," Richardson said. "He didn't realize that if you have a ladder you have a liability issue if kids in the neighborhood climb it and get hurt. And, of course, it just makes the house more accessible to burglars."

Richardson said representatives of the Home Builders Association of Georgia were able to sit down with the legislator and get the bill killed.

Richardson, who grew up in the construction industry, recently began a one-year term as president of the Home Builders Association of Georgia. He has held several other offices with the group, including vice president.

"When I first started my business after my dad retired (in 1991), I found it increasingly hard to get worker's compensation insurance for my employees. And I found that if you belonged to the Home Builders Association of Georgia you could get worker's compensation insurance. They had started a program. So I joined for that," Richardson said. "But I started going to local meetings, and it was pretty informative. We would talk about common issues and common problems. I learned a lot there, so I started getting involved in the state association. I just started going to the state meetings and getting involved in the different committees. I was on the government affairs committee, the regulatory affairs committee. It kind of snowballed from there."

Richardson said the home builders association is one of the few groups out there that looks at the overall picture when it comes to the construction industry.

"The heat and air and HVAC people look at HVAC issues. Electricians look at the electrical components. Fire officials work on the fire code. But the home builder is the only one in the process of building a home that looks at the total picture," he said.

The group can also help home builders with the continuing education courses they need to maintain the various certifications and licenses they are required to have. But Richardson said the past few years, with the decline nationwide in the housing industry, has been tough on the association.

"We have statewide around 4,000 members. In 2006, we had about 13,000. The locals and the national association have also been hit," he said.

But he said the group continues to enjoy good relationships with officials at both the state and local levels.

"We've got a good relationship with our county commission and city councils. We work with them and they ask us for our opinions on things that will affect the home building industry," he said.

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