State and Local Reporter - 10/01/2007 (Plain Text Version)

Thomas Woods, Chair
Independence, Missouri

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In this issue:
Register for SLGA Conference Online Until Oct. 14
Austin Mayor Will Wynn to address NAHB’s Annual State & Local Government Affairs Conference
Why Vote in November? To Protect Your Business
Governors Say States Stressed by Absence of Unifom Immigration Policy
NAHB Member Resources Available on Immigration Law
NAHB promotes Green Building Standards Among Local Associations
Election Update: Kentucky, Louisianna, Mississippi, New Jersey, Virginia
Build PAC Introduces Peer to Peer Initiative
Congress Tackles States' Agenda
State of Maryland Calls for Licensure of Builder Sales Agents
NAHB's BuilderLink Update: In-District Congressional Visits
Community Service Award Entries Due by Nov. 12

Congress Tackles States' Agenda

As lawmakers on Capitol Hill shift their focus to domestic issues, states are sending a simple message: more money and less interference.

States are lobbying the first Democratic-controlled Congress in 12 years on several fronts:

Immigration — Comprehensive immigration reform may have been defeated, but states are watching several pieces of that overall package still alive on Capitol Hill. One proposal would create a “guest-worker” program for agricultural workers and another would give “green cards” and in-state tuition benefits to illegal aliens who arrived in the United States as minors and who graduate from high school.

Energy — Both the House and Senate passed different versions of energy bills. States oppose a plan in the House measure that would require utilities to produce a certain amount of power through renewable sources, a requirement that could threaten the 26 states that already have such “renewable energy portfolio” standards.

Voter Paper Trail — State and local officials have moved aggressively to block a measure (HR 811) that would require a paper trail for every vote cast beginning in 2008, thus overriding more than 30 state paper trail laws and forcing many states to replace voting machines they just purchased. The bill also would require random audits in close elections. The legislation had been slated to go before the House of Representatives until it hit a buzz saw of opposition from local and state officials, and it’s uncertain when the House might take up the bill.

National Guard — Governors are pressing Congress to undo a change passed last year to the 200-year-old Insurrection Act giving the president authority to go over a governor’s head and call up National Guard troops to aid a state during natural disasters or other public emergencies. Language rolling back the change has been attached to a must-have money bill for the Pentagon. Up until then, governors were the sole commanders in chief of citizen soldiers in local Guard units during emergencies within the state. The conflict over who should control Guard units arose in the days after Hurricane Katrina in 2005 when President Bush wanted to federalize control of guardsmen in Louisiana in the chaos after the storm, but Gov. Kathleen Blanco (D) refused to relinquish command.

Appropriations — Congress is behind schedule in passing appropriation bills to fund the various federal agencies and programs for the new fiscal year that begins Oct. 1. That’s important because the federal budget provides nearly 30% of state revenue, making it the largest single source of funds for many states. Congress is expected to pass stopgap measures that could last weeks or months until the House and Senate approve the final money bills. For states, that means uncertainty and could result in fewer federal dollars than states had been banking on.

Also in Washington, D.C., but not on Capitol Hill, states are anxiously awaiting a final rule from the Department of Homeland Security that spell out how states will enforce the 2005 Real ID Act, the federal plan for keeping driver’s licenses out of the hands of terrorists and illegal immigrants. The final rule is expected this fall.

For more information, contact Alex Strong at 800-368-5242 x8279.