NBN Online for the week of February 6, 2006

So Cal Builders Launch TV Ads to Counter Growing NIMBYism

A proactive television and public relations campaign designed to reverse anti-growth and anti-builder sentiment in one of the fastest growing regions in the country is already showing positive results less than two weeks after the campaign launch.

“We are already seeing the public rallying to our side,” said Carlos Rodriguez, senior vice president and director of public affairs for the Baldy View Chapter of the Building Industry Association of Southern California, which encompasses San Bernardino County and parts of Los Angeles County.

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Builders Call for Sensible Flood Insurance Reforms From Congress

Testifying before the Senate Banking Committee on Feb. 2, NAHB President David Pressly told lawmakers that the nation’s home builders support efforts to reform the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) to ensure its long-term financial stability, but cautioned that any legislative proposals should not be an overreaction to unusual circumstances stemming from last year’s devastating hurricane season.

“The NFIP is not simply about flood insurance premiums and payouts, but is rather a comprehensive program that guides future development and mitigates against future loss,” said Pressly. “While a financially stable NFIP is in all of our interests, the steps that Congress takes to achieve this aim have the potential to greatly impact housing affordability and the ability of local communities to exercise control over their growth and development.”

Circuit Court Returns Wetlands Case to District Court

It’s back to the courthouse for the “Tulloch II” lawsuit.

The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals has reversed the U.S. District Court’s decision that an important wetland regulation case is not ready to be decided because builders and developers do not yet face a hardship under NAHB v. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

The court of appeals agreed with NAHB that its challenge is “ripe for review” because the association based its claims on purely legal principles that do not require a court to wait until the regulation is actually applied to any individual builder or developer.

Why is this important to NAHB members? NAHB can now return to the lower court and convince the court that when its members are not discarding soil or sediment into federally protected waters, they should not be regulated under the Clean Water Act.