House passes drywall legislation

WASHINGTON, D.C. (WAVY) - The U.S. House of Representatives has passed drywall legislation proposed by Scott Rigell (R-Va.) that would set chemical standards for domestic and imported drywall.  The legislation is called the Contaminated Drywall Safety Act of 2012.

"Mr. Speaker, this is about doing what is right to address a terrible injustice that has fallen upon so many families, many of whom live in the 2nd Congressional District of Virginia," said Rigell on the House floor Wednesday night.

You can watch Rigell's full address here .

"It's a real step forward for holding the Chinese manufacturers accountable for the defective products they shipped to the US that hurt so many Americans not only here [in Virginia], but really, across the country," Rigell told WAVY.com.

Read the full legislation here.

Rigell is the co-chair of the bi-partisan Contaminated Drywall Bill which would create a labeling system so any more contaminated drywall could be traced directly to the manufacturer. It would also set a limit on the amount of sulfur in drywall.

Click here for WAVY's previous coverage about Chinese drywall.

The bill will be up for a vote in the Senate.