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Interest Groups Put NOR Laws and Affordable Housing Concerns on the Agenda

• Sharing the stage with Interior Secretary Gale Norton, Dan Fulton, president and CEO of Weyerhaeuser Real Estate Company and a member of NAHB's High Production Home Builders Council, told a packed room of legislators about the positive impact that Notice and Opportunity to Repair (NOR) legislation is having in the 20 states around the country that have passed these laws over the past 24 months. At a meeting of the American Legislative Exchange Council in Seattle last month that was attended by more than 2,000 state legislators, business leaders and public policy experts, Fulton cited a “remarkable collaboration between home builders and ALEC members” on this issue. His speech also encouraged legislators in states without NOR laws to examine the legislation and see if it is a good fit for their builders and consumers.  

During the meeting, NAHB also helped pass a workforce housing resolution out of the ALEC Commerce and Economic Development Task Force. The resolution supports efforts to reduce regulatory barriers to housing; supports passage of NOR legislation; and supports partnerships among builders, community groups and local governments to increase the supply of affordably-priced housing. The resolution will now go before the entire ALEC board for full adoption at the group's next meeting.

• During last month’s annual meeting in Salt Lake City of the National Conference of State Legislatures, a bi-partisan organization serving legislators and legislative staff in all 50 states, NAHB and the Real Estate Advocacy Group for States (REAGS) co-hosted a reception at the Utah Governor's Mansion to honor Utah Realtor and State Senator Al Mansell (R), who received the 2004 REAGS Leadership Award

Participating in a panel discussion on housing, families and economic development, Salt Lake City home builder and NAHB member Dan Lofgren told legislators about NAHB’s Workforce Housing Initiative. Another panel of 10 city officials and housing experts, including NAHB Vice President-Treasurer David Pressly, said that a national housing policy and agenda are sorely needed to bring down the barriers to workforce housing and homeownership.

• Pressly also attended a roundtable discussion sponsored by the National League of Cities (NLC) last month in Columbus, OH, which reached a consensus that national housing policy is needed to address the housing affordability problem.

“There are a growing number of Americans who can't afford a decent home or are spending so much of their income on housing that they can't afford other essentials,” said Charlie Lyons, a selectman in the Town of Arlington, MA, and president of the NLC.  “We need to have a mature conversation about where we're headed and talk about what local officials can do together to begin to confront this continuing problem.”

The roundtable brought together people who build, sell and finance homes with people who play important roles in housing to explore barriers to affordable housing and innovations at the local level to try to meet housing needs. The discussion, which aired statewide on Ohio public television and was rebroadcast to a wider public television audience, was hosted by Chris Moore of WQED-TV in Pittsburgh. 

• At a meeting of the National Association of Counties (NACo) in early July in Phoenix, NAHB co-hosted a reception and policy forum for county leaders in that organization’s Large Urban County Caucus. The reception was an extension of a partnership between NAHB and NACo in which the two have agreed to meet annually to discuss how they can work together to address issues of common concern. The next meeting will take place in Biloxi, MS, during the State and Local Government Affairs Conference.

For more informatiion on NAHB's relationship with ALEC, NCSL, NACo and other groups, e-mail Carlos Gutierrez, NAHB’s industry relations director, or call him at 800-368-5242 x8242.

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