Politicians change but NAR issues remain active

WASHINGTON – Nov. 9, 2006 – Some National Association of Realtor® (NAR) supporters in the U.S. House and Senate lost their re-election bids Tuesday, but Realtors are optimistic about making progress on many of their top national legislative issues in the new Washington political environment, thanks to the wide appeal of their issues.

“Our issues have always had wide bipartisan appeal,” says Jerry Giovaniello, NAR chief lobbyist, “so we are very well placed to see progress on keeping banks out of real estate, working to get affordable health care coverage for small businesses, and ensuring adequate availability of insurance in disaster-prone areas.”

In a key victory for NAR, freshman Melissa Bean (D-Ill.) a staunch supporter of Realtors’ issues but considered one of the most at-risk Democrats because of her short tenure in the House, solidly retained her seat.

“Rep. Bean has been a great ally,” says John Harrison, chair of the Realtors Political Action Committee (RPAC), which contributed funds to Bean’s campaign and also provided support through the NAR Opportunity Race program and Independent Expenditure program.

Under the “Opp” Race program, NAR provides educational and get-out-the vote materials in support of the RPAC-backed candidate to Realtors in the district. The Independent Expenditure program funded radio ads and direct mail to the general public, urging them to vote for the candidates as well.

Bean was part of a Democratic sweep in Tuesday’s national elections. The Democrats took control of the U.S. House of Representatives for the first time in a dozen years, claiming more than 25 Republican-controlled seats, including that of key NAR-supporter Anne Northup (R-Ky). Democrats also appear to have taken away Republican control of the Senate as well.

Northup, who lost narrowly to newspaper publisher John Yarmuth, has been a champion of keeping banks out of real estate. Each year she has authored legislation that put a one-year hold on a proposed regulation by the U.S. Department of Treasury and Federal Reserve, allowing banks to own real estate brokerages and property management companies.

Even so, NAR leaders are hopeful the pieces are in place for Congress to keep banks out of real estate permanently. The Community Choice in Real Estate Act (H.R. 111), the NAR-backed bill that would prohibit bank-owned brokerages, had 259 House co-sponsors in early November, well more than a majority.

What’s more, Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) who’s in line to chair the House Financial Services Committee, is expected to allow the bill to come up for a vote in the committee. The committee’s outgoing chair, Rep. Michael Oxley (R-Ohio) has repeatedly blocked a vote on the bill.

In the Senate, Democrats picked off several sharply contested seats, including the seat of Jim Talent (R-Mo.) a top backer of NAR-supported small-business health plans.

On the positive side, Sen. Ben Nelson (D-Neb.) who helped move small-business health plan legislation to near passage, won his race, receiving strong support from Realtors. NAR used television commercials and direct mail to urge Nebraskans to cast their vote for a legislator with a reputation for working with senators from both sides of the aisle.

Click here to see the candidates NAR supported in the elections. (http://www.naractioncenter.com/rpac/rpac-webpage.html)

Source: Robert Freedman, REALTOR® Magazine Online

© 2006 FLORIDA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®

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