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Housing Slump Adds Urgency to Upcoming Legislative Conference
Members of the building industry who are concerned about the legislative process and its impact on the health of their business and the nation’s housing sector will want to mark their calendar for Wednesday, June 6.
This is the date of the association’s most important grassroots event of the year — the NAHB Legislative Conference, which leads into the association’s spring board meeting in Washington, D.C.
The annual NAHB conference provides an ideal opportunity for association members to share their concerns on housing-related issues with lawmakers on Capitol Hill and to urge their representatives and senators to support policies that will keep the economy moving forward and get the housing industry back on track.
The timing of the conference is of particular significance this year, with the current shakeout in the subprime mortgage market posing unknown repercussions for the economy, financial markets and the housing sector.
Decisions that affect a builder’s business are being made every day in the halls of Congress. Tax policy, environmental regulations, soaring health care costs and many other issues can add thousands of dollars to a firm’s annual operating budget, and Congress weighs in on each and every one of them.
Diana Symbol, owner of Professional Services Unlimited in Wasilla, Alaska, recalls that her participation in last year’s legislative conference was an invaluable experience.
Wasilla and about 30 other builders met with their entire state congressional delegation and reported progress in a number of areas. “Our meetings were very successful,” she said. “We received a personal commitment from our lawmakers to work with us on storm water and tax issues.”
“It’s important as builders, and as members of NAHB, that we visit with our lawmakers and share the concerns of our industry,” said Bob Ross, owner of G&R Construction Services, a residential remodeling, single-family custom home and commercial building firm in Austin, Texas. “This was a productive day for the cause of housing.”
Your participation can make a difference. In these challenging times — when other interest groups are clamoring to push their agenda in Washington — a strong builder turnout on June 6 will send a powerful message to members of Congress the housing must remain a national priority.
Come to Washington and show your members of Congress the great work you do back home in building your communities. Urge your lawmakers to adopt sensible policies to enable your business to thrive and allow the nation’s home builders to fulfill their mission of providing safe, decent, affordable housing to all Americans.
For more information and to register for NAHB’s 2007 Legislative Conference, click here; or e-mail Jessica Boyce, or call her at 800-368-5242 x8334.
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