Hundreds of Texas REALTORS® were in Washington, D.C., May 15-20 to advocate for real estate consumers during the 2017 REALTOR® Legislative Meetings. Here are a few highlights from the week.

The voice for real estate at the U.S. Capitol
Texas REALTORS® met with all 36 members of the Texas Congressional delegation (or their staff members) to discuss pro-real estate policies, like reauthorizing the National Flood Insurance Program and protecting sustainable homeownership. They also attended meetings with U.S. Sens. John Cornyn and Ted Cruz while on Capitol Hill.

Recognizing Texas REALTOR® leaders
During the five-day conference, several Texas REALTORS® were recognized for their outstanding advocacy successes:

John Nichols receives FPC award on stage
2007 TAR President John Nichols received the National Association of REALTORS® Federal Political Coordinator (FPC) Meritorious Service Award on May 16, 2017 during NAR’s Legislative Meetings.
  • TAR 1997 President John Nichols, of Houston, was honored with the National Association of REALTORS® Meritorious Service Award for his decades of service as Federal Political Coordinator for Congressman John Culberson.
  • NAR’s Board of Directors appointed 2017 TAR Secretary/Treasurer Tray Bates as 2018 REALTOR® Party Fundraising Liaison.
  • NAR’s Board of Directors appointed 2015 TAR Chairman Scott Kesner as 2018 Regional Vice President for Region 10 (Texas and Louisiana).

NAR Board of Directors takes action
The board voted to continue its support of Upstream, the technology developed to give brokers and agents a better way to manage their listing data and direct its distribution to MLSs, vendors, and third-party listing aggregators.

The board also supported a proposal to restructure the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB); legislation requiring that parties who claim violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) notify the person or organization responsible for the alleged violation and give them an opportunity to remedy it before filing a lawsuit; the exclusion of reverse mortgages when HUD calculates the minimum capital reserve required for the Mutual Mortgage Insurance Fund (MMIF); and several other items.

Review all of the board’s actions at nar.realtor.

REALTOR® Party advocates in Texas
Texas had a strong presence during the REALTOR® Political Action Committee (RPAC) Awards Ceremony recognizing individuals, local associations, and state associations that achieved excellence in the 2016 fundraising year:

  • 18 Texas REALTORS® were inducted into the 2016 REALTORS® Political Action Committee (RPAC) Hall of Fame:
    • $125,000 level: Mary Frances Burleson, MetroTex
    • $100,000 level: Mike Brodie, Collin County
    • $50,000 level: Bill Evans, Austin; Mike Huff, Houston; Eloise Eriksson Martin, MetroTex; Avis Wukasch, Williamson County
    • $25,000 level: Diana Ayers, Houston; Christi Borden, Houston; Brenda Cole, MetroTex; Marilyn Frederick, MetroTex; Amy Hughes, Amarillo; Veronica Mullenix, Houston; John Nichols, Houston; Jim Smith, Austin; Rick Thomason, Amarillo; Jeffrey Updike, MetroTex; Mark Woodruff, Houston; Robert Wright, Austin
  • The Texas REALTORS® received the Triple Crown Award and was recognized for overall fundraising in the large-state category for 2016.
  • The Houston Association of REALTORS® was recognized for overall fundraising among mega-size local associations after raising more than $1 million in 2016.

Put yourself in the news
Did you attend the REALTOR® Legislative Meetings? NAR has a fill-in-the-blank press release on nar.realtor for you to customize and send to local media to promote your participation.