Oklahoma's housing shortage demands solutions at every scale, and two reforms cleared an important hurdle this week that would help deliver the kinds of small, naturally affordable homes our communities need most. 

The Affordable Housing and Consolidated Dwellings Technical Committee for the Oklahoma Uniform Building Code Commission (OUBCC) advanced two proposals that, if adopted, would expand the supply of missing middle housing across the state: a pathway to legalize single-stair buildings up to four stories, and an expansion of the International Residential Code to cover up to four dwelling units. Both proposals now move to the full Commission for consideration. 

Why building codes matter 

Building codes are the quiet infrastructure of housing policy. They govern what can be built, at what cost, and in what configuration. When codes draw a hard line that pushes a useful housing type out of reach, the effect is the same as a zoning prohibition: the housing simply does not get built. Updating outdated code provisions is one of the most direct ways to expand housing supply and choice in Oklahoma, and it does so without compromising the life-safety and accessibility outcomes that protect residents. 

Code Change Proposal 9: Single-stair buildings up to four stories 

Authored by Jake Martin, president of the Oklahoma Fire Sprinkler Association, Code Change Proposal 9 is modeled after International Building Code Proposal E24-24, a national reform effort that has gained traction in code-writing bodies and state legislatures across the country. The proposal would create a pathway to legalize single-stair buildings up to four stories with a maximum floor area of 4,000 square feet. 

While the two-stair requirement has long been a standard safeguard, advances in fire suppression, detection, and compartmentalization now allow a single stair to deliver comparable life-safety outcomes in smaller buildings. The current rule's main practical effect is geometric: the floor plate needed for two stair cores and a double-loaded corridor is too large for many urban infill lots. The result is a missing scale of housing. Builders can construct townhomes or large garden-style complexes, but the four-story walk-up that has worked well in cities for more than a century is functionally illegal in Oklahoma. 

Proposal 9 incorporates best-practice safety measures that have been tested in jurisdictions where single-stair buildings are already legal: 

• Automatic fire sprinkler systems throughout the building 

• Enhanced fire alarm and notification systems 

• Two-hour fire-rated exit enclosures 

Together, these provisions deliver life-safety performance comparable to a two-stair building while making the building geometry workable on smaller lots. Seattle has permitted single-stair buildings of this scale for decades, and a growing number of states, including Texas and Montana, have advanced single-stair reforms in recent legislative sessions. 

Code Change Proposal 4: Up to four dwelling units under the IRC 

Authored by Tyler Parette, Executive Director of Housing Forward, Code Change Proposal 4 addresses a different gap in Oklahoma's adopted codes. Today, one- and two-family dwellings are constructed under the International Residential Code (IRC), a code designed for small-scale residential construction. Anything larger, including a simple triplex or fourplex, falls under the International Building Code (IBC), which is designed for commercial and large multifamily projects. The IBC carries cost and complexity that small-scale residential builders cannot absorb on a three- or four-unit project. 

The practical effect is that very few triplexes or fourplexes get built in Oklahoma, even where zoning allows them. The code itself, not the market, has effectively prohibited these housing types in much of the state. 

Proposal 4 would extend IRC applicability to three- and four-unit dwellings, provided two conditions are met: 

• The building is sprinklered with an NFPA 13D system, the residential sprinkler standard already used in single-family and two-family construction 

• Four-unit dwellings comply with the accessibility requirements found in the IBC 

The result is a clean, code-level fix that lets small residential builders deliver three- and four-unit buildings under a code designed for residential construction, while preserving the life-safety and accessibility outcomes that matter most. 

Why these reforms matter for Oklahoma 

The two proposals address different building types, but they share a common logic. Both identify a place where Oklahoma's adopted codes draw a hard line that pushes a useful housing type out of reach, and both replace that line with a performance-based standard that preserves safety outcomes while expanding what can actually be built. 

These are not flashy reforms. They will not make headlines the way a major zoning change or a new financing tool might. But for the builders and developers working to deliver more homes at a wider range of price points, the building code is often the difference between a project that pencils out and one that doesn't. Small apartment buildings and small multi-unit homes have historically delivered some of the most naturally affordable housing in American cities, including here in Oklahoma. Legalizing their construction under modern, performance-based standards is foundational work. 

The Bottom Line 

Two building code reforms cleared the OUBCC's Affordable Housing and Consolidated Dwellings Technical Committee this week, and both now move to the full Commission. Together, they would expand the range of housing types that can be legally and economically built in Oklahoma. 

Let's build a future where every Oklahoman has access to a home that fits their needs and their budget.