Washington Update - 06/12/2009 (Plain Text Version)

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GREEN Act the Right Approach for Sustainable Homes

Testifying before Congress on June 11, NAHB President Jerry Howard praised H.R. 2336, the GREEN Act of 2009, which sets new green building and sustainability benchmarks for properties that get financial assistance from the Department of Housing and Urban Development. But Howard also left members with a warning: H.R. 2454, the other major piece of climate change legislation now before Congress, includes requirements that could make the GREEN Act obsolete before it’s ever enacted into law.

“I am hopeful that this subcommittee will be able to restore the balance necessary to truly incentivize green building and preserve affordability as the debate over climate change continues,” Howard said. “It would be terribly disappointing to see the good faith effort and collaborative work on the GREEN Act displaced with unworkable federal mandates as envisioned in H.R. 2454.”

Howard told lawmakers on the House Subcommittee on Housing and Community Opportunity that the association’s members agree with the bill’s approach, which will ensure cost-effective energy-efficiency improvements to HUD-financed homes. In accompanying written testimony, he detailed the strides NAHB members have made toward the creation of more sustainable housing stock and the education, certification and training programs the association has launched to further that growth.

“We have a major role to play in the manner in which energy efficiency and sustainable technologies are introduced into the housing stock,” Howard said. “Despite the downturn, NAHB has not wavered in its commitment to promoting green building and energy efficiency in a manner that is affordable and effective, and legitimately improves energy efficiency for the next generation of housing.”

For more information, contact Elizabeth Odina at 1-800-368-5242, x8570.

NAHB Issues Media Statement on Enhancing Home Buyer Tax Credit

NAHB conducted a conference call this week with members of the Executive Board to chart strategy moving forward on how best to promote, enhance and extend the current $8,000 first-time home buyer tax credit, which is set to expire on Dec. 1. Afterwards, NAHB Chairman Joe Robson released the following statement to the media in regard to enhancing the home buyer tax credit:

“The National Association of Home Builders supports the Business Roundtable’s efforts to promote policies that will stimulate housing demand. NAHB looks forward to working with all interested parties in the business community, on Capitol Hill and in the Obama Administration to foster new ideas and policies that will help to get housing and the economy back on track, particularly at a time when the recovery is facing a number of significant challenges.

“Due to expire at the end of November, the current $8,000 first-time home buyer tax credit has proved to be an effective policy targeted toward a specific demographic group that is showing tangible results. Enhancing this credit would help to stoke the economic engine at a key point in our recovery.

“When the debate begins in earnest, we look forward to working with Congress to consider all appropriate tax measures to restore the health of housing and the nation’s economy.”

For more information, contact Greg Brown at x8421. [return to top]

Action on Health Care Revs Up on Capitol Hill

Health care reform legislation is moving quickly through Congress. Both the House and the Senate have laid out an aggressive timeline for markup and floor passage of legislation to reform the nation's health-care system before the August congressional recess. The House Ways and Means and Energy and Commerce Committees plan to hold mark ups on their bills after the Congress returns from its July 4 recess.

The Senate Finance Committee aims to have its blueprint out by June 17 and the panel is on track to consider its measure during the week of June 22.

The Senate House, Education, Labor and Pension (HELP) Committee, chaired by Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.), unveiled the Affordable Health Choices Act this week and plans on marking up the legislation on June 16. Among its provisions are a proposed mandate that employers provide health insurance to workers or face a penalty.

NAHB believes that the HELP measure largely ignores the small business community's needs. Further, potentially contentious details such as how this bill will be paid for still remain unknown. Proposals to cap the value of all itemized deductions for higher-income taxpayers -- which would reduce the value of the mortgage interest and real estate tax deductions for home owners and home buyers -- along with a plan to change the taxation of carried interest are still on the table.

As details continue to unfold, NAHB will stand firm against employer mandates as well as changes to the current tax codes. To view the HELP legislation, click here. For more information, contact Erin Tario at x8413. [return to top]

Green Jobs Improvement Act Introduced in Senate

S. 1238, the Green Jobs Improvement Act was introduced in the Senate on June 11 by Sen. Johnny Isakson (R-Ga). He was joined by five cosponsors: Sens. Richard Burr (R-N.C.), John Cornyn (R-Texas), David Vitter (R-La.), Saxby Chambliss (R-Ga.), and John Thune (R-S.D.). The legislation would remove the requirement that a business entity must be partnered with a labor union in order to be eligible for Green Jobs Training Grants funded through the Department of Labor. S. 1238 is the Senate companion bill to H.R. 2026, which was introduced in May by Rep. John Kline (R-Minn.). The House bill has 16 cosponsors. At this time, no hearings have been scheduled on the legislation in either the House Education and Labor Committee, or the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee. For more information, contact Jenna Hamilton at x8407. [return to top]