By Mindy Gronbeck, Legislative and Public Policy Chair
I am not talking about House of Cards type of liaisons; I am talking about getting people EXCITED to participate on a local and national level on the issues that affect our properties. I want you to be PASSIONATE about things that can cause us problems on the properties that we manage. I want you to be knowledgeable and LOVE that IREM works extremely hard to ensure that we are watching everything that comes out of Capitol Hill and the state legislatures so you are well informed when it lands on your desk. And you didn’t think I could apply “sexy” terms to legislative and public policy?
Sometimes it is easier to stick our head in the sand and figure that our little voice isn’t big enough to make a difference. But your little voice matters, and with IREM, it becomes a big voice. A deep alluring authoritative voice (think Sam Elliot or Matthew McConaughey) for you gals; and for the guys… I can’t help you with the visual, but I am sure if you bring it up at lunch today you will be able to come up with a few ladies that have alluring voices. IREM collaborates with all kinds of organizations in our industry to make our voice heard as loud as possible; NAR, ICSC, NAHB and MBA to name a few.
Sometimes we don’t talk enough about what IREM does regarding public policy and legislative items. Sometimes we get uncomfortable talking about politics – especially in our current climate. But if you stick to the issues that affect our properties and don’t bring the partisan feelings into it, we are all attempting to get to the same end result: the best policies that protect the real estate management industry.
The Government Affairs Director, Ted Thurn, the Government Affairs Coordinator, Andrew Lomo, and the Legislative and Public Policy Committee have been hard at work this year. We saw our In-District meetings increase in April. We are evaluating all IREM Public Policy positions for relevance in 2018 to make sure that we have the most up to date positions. In July, the Federal Advocacy Board and I will hold a Congressional Briefing on Federal Policies and their Impact on Real Estate on Capitol Hill. Topics included are “Drive By” ADA lawsuits, sales tax on out of state purchases, emotional support animals in multifamily housing, and the National Flood Insurance Program. All of these are really HOT topics and presented by people who are PASSIONATE about the topics. How is that not sexy?!
Additionally, in 2019 we are bringing back the Capitol Hill Fly-in. This does not mean that the in-district meetings are going away. What it does mean, is that depending on the issues we will bring in certain IREM members and target congressional members based on their committee assignments and responsibilities. We are hoping that the 2019 fly-in will be strategic to the lawmakers that have the most influence and impact on the issues at hand. That is just a high elevation view as to what we have been working on this year and next! Exciting, right?
Even if legislative and public policy is not “your thing” that gets you excited and passionate, you can still participate through RPAC (Realtors Political Action Committee). It is super easy to donate online! We are asking for every member to donate $25; which I believe is pretty reasonable for insurance for political needs that protect our investments. For the price of what you may spend on lunch today, coffee for the week, or movie tickets, you can ensure that your investment is still being protected.
BE EXCITED; BE PASSIONATE and LOVE our IREM Legislative and Public Policy folks!