Majority of US supports stricter construction standards in extreme weather areas

An excavator sinks in water at a lakeshore construction site. (Image: Adobe Stock)

The findings show that most Americas (73%) support further regulation of the construction industry in areas vulnerable to extreme weather. But there was much lower support for moving people out of entire villages or regions (13%). They were also less likely to support outright building bans.

“Respondents like more oversight of construction in areas vulnerable to weather disasters,” explained Pew. “When asked about government setting stricter building standards in these high-risk communities, 73% say this is a good idea. In contrast, just 37% say the same of measures to ban new construction.”

While respondents supported government intervention regarding construction logistics, they were mixed on financial support.

“More than half (57%) support aid for communities to rebuild after extreme weather events, with a far smaller share (20%) saying this is a bad idea. Views on providing support to pay rising home insurance costs are more divided, with 40% saying this is a good idea and 34% saying this is a bad idea. But when asked about government buying people’s homes in high-risk areas so they can purchase ones in lower-risk areas, more say this is a bad (38%) than good (25%) idea,” said Pew.

On climate, politics matter but not by much

“Among those who say they’ve experienced any of these extreme weather events, a large majority say climate change contributed at least a little,” said Pew, noting that political ideology did not weight as heavily on this question as others. “Most Republicans – and nearly all Democrats – say climate change played a role.”

Pew said Democrats (79%) and Republicans (68%) “share the view that stricter standards for new construction in high-risk areas are a good idea.”

While Pew notes support of bans was “just” 37%, it’s a considerable figure when extrapolated to the population: more than 120 million Americans support entire bans. On the other hand, 29% believe banning regions for dwelling are a bad idea (less than 100 million people, extrapolated over the population), while 33% were unsure.