On Wednesday morning, LVAR leadership visited Capitol Hill in Harrisburg to discuss legislative issues with the Lehigh Valley delegation of state legislators. The hill visits were conducted as part of the annual Pennsylvania Association of REALTORS® Government Affairs Seminar, and allowed REALTORS® to talk about issues that are important to the industry.
LVAR leadership, including President Susan Seidel, discussed Senate Bill 241 (Tomlinson, R-Bucks) which would allow escrow funds to be disbursed after a certain amount of time following termination of an agreement of sale, and asked legislators to support the bill when it is considered in committee next week. Senators Pat Browne (R-16) and Lisa Boscola (D-18) are cosponsors of the bill and support its passage.
Also discussed was our continued opposition to raising the real estate transfer tax and sales tax on real estate services. With the state facing a massive budget deficit, LVAR wanted to ensure these two revenue sources stay off the table as legislators try to figure out how to plug the massive budget shortfall.
All told, LVAR leadership met with 10 of the Lehigh Valley’s state legislators. They included: Representatives Karen Beyer (R-131), Jennifer Mann (D-132), Joe Brennan (D-133), Doug Reichley (R-134), Steve Samuelson (D-135), Richard Grucela (R-137), Craig Dally (R-138), Julie Harhart (183), Gary Day (R-187), and Senator Boscola’s (D-18) Chief of Staff.
The hill visits followed a successful legislative reception held the evening before, which was attended by 85 members of the General Assembly.
LVAR leadership participating in the Hill Visits included President Susan Seidel, President-Elect Cathy Amant, Secretary Denise Rich, Government Affairs Committee Chair Frank Renaldi Jr, LVAR-PAC Chair Tiffany Hayward, Board of Director Therese Kelly, RPAC Trustee George Raad, and Government Affairs Committee member Tom Flad.
The power and persistence of the REALTOR’s public policy advocacy has paid off, again!
On Wednesday, President Barack Obama signed H.R. 1105, the Omnibus Appropriations Bill, into law. In doing so, he ended our nearly eight-year battle to preserve the separation between banking and commerce. Specifically, this new law permanently bans large national banking conglomerates from entering the real estate business by preventing the Treasury and Federal Reserve, by rule, order, or any other way, from opening the door to such activities.
This victory is largely a tribute to the REALTOR’s support and leadership on this issue during the past many years. This is a great victory for the real estate industry and consumers. Congratulations!