State and Local Reporter - 04/29/2003 (Plain Text Version)

Debora Trimpe, Chair
Flower Mound, Texas

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In this issue:
Notice and Opportunity to Repair Making Steady Progress
No Improvement for State Budget Crisis
Idaho Governor Signs Tort Reform, Opportunity to Repair Bills
Builders Denounce New Jersey Anti-Growth Plan
Washington City Claims Fee Is a "Tax"
Industry News
New Web Site Offers Help with Compliance
Spring Board Meeting Preview

Industry News

Arizona
A lack of affordable housing in Arizona forces one in 10 households into crowded or substandard living conditions, according to a recently released report commissioned by the HUD and the Arizona Governor's Office of Housing Development.

The report found that nearly 226,000, or 11.8%, of the households in the state lack affordable housing. In Phoenix alone, the shortage affects more than 30% of the city's households. Those affected the most earn less than half of $52,109, the state's median household income.

The report included a survey of public officials and housing experts, who listed barriers a number of barriers to affordable housing, including expensive or limited land, lack of infrastructure, low wages, lack of jobs and zoning.

Source: Arizona Republic, April 19, 2003

Colorado
The Housing and Building Association of Colorado Springs has compiled a report to address misconceptions about the industry, including the thought that homebuilders are solely responsible for growth.

Some of the report’s common-sense findings include:

52% of the area’s population growth between 1987 and 2001 resulted from an increase in births over deaths.
Changing lifestyles and increases in population are the cause of most school crowding.
The area’s population increase resulted in increased water consumption.

As HBA President Brad Asmus said, “Builders don’t cause growth, they react to it.”

Source: The Gazette, March 24, 2003

National
The Association of Trial Attorneys of America (ATLA) is inviting non-ATLA members to help fund their efforts to oppose federal and state tort reform.

Businesses and individuals who contribute from $1,000 to $5,000 per month can be considered Friends of ATLA and become “nationally known among trial lawyers as a staunch supporter of the civil justice system.”

To date, six groups — most of which provide plaintiff services — have joined the effort, adding $18,000 a month to the trial lawyers' coffers.

Source: Association of Trial Lawyers of America Web site

National
A “new generation of urban leaders and thinkers” has introduced a magazine to discuss questions of how cities can remain competitive while addressing environmental and social issues. The Next American City provides reports, reviews and interviews on issues that will likely determine the future of cities, especially transportation, planning and development, housing and environmental issues.

Published by recent Yale graduates, the quarterly magazine's first issue featured stories such as “Why Building 'Smart' Is Hard” and “The Three Acre Lot Versus the Town Center: Where Do Americans Want to Live?”

Subscription and submission information is available at www.americancity.org.

Source: The Next American City Web site

Wisconsin
Milwaukee was one of the metropolitan areas most in need of changes spurred by the U.S. Fair Housing Act, a law that marks its 35th anniversary this month.

William R. Tisdale, leader of the Metropolitan Milwaukee Fair Housing Council, says that fair housing laws have not erased the city's color lines completely. In 1995, for example, American Family Mutual Insurance agreed to a $14.5 million settlement of charges that the company “redlined” some areas of the city for coverage denial. That case marked the nation's first use of the Fair Housing Act in an insurance industry discrimination case.

The National Fair Housing Alliance reports that contentions of racial discrimination accounted for 30% of fair housing complaints last year, and nationality discrimination accounted for another 12%.

Source: Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, April 27, 2003