Advocacy Is at the Heart of What CAR Does for You

LEGISLATIVE

Advocacy Is at the Heart of What CAR Does for You

Elizabeth Peetz

Vice President of Government Affairs, Colorado Association of REALTORS®

This recent legislative session that finished May 11 was a very busy one for the legislative policy committee member volunteers, CAR lobbyists, and CAR Government Affairs staff. With over 100 bills with positions on the bill sheet and another 130 or so watched by staff, the second regular session of the 73rd General Assembly was quite a doozy. When all the dust settled, there are lots of reasons to celebrate and we identified many issues that will continue to be discussed in the next couple of years.

For the first time in five years, housing affordability and wildfire prevention took center stage at the Capitol, which is no surprise to many of you actively dealing with rising mortgage rates and decreasing inventory. That scenario was also exacerbated by a fiscal outlook with some warning signs of economic slowing and inflation. In addition, Coloradoans felt the increasing pressure of a high cost of living coming out of the pandemic. Federal American Rescue Act Plan (ARPA) dollars infused the state legislative process with more money than a normal budget cycle – all on the cusp of a statewide election year.

The CAR Government Affairs and Legislative Policy Committee focused on ensuring that homeownership remained a focus in affordable housing bills. The entire housing continuum supported our efforts, especially in the creation of new affordable units. We are very pleased to see bills that build upon the legacy that CAR started with 21-1271 last year. Some bills created new revolving loan funds, housing trust authorities, and local government grant programs. Another bill prioritized the innovation behind tiny homes, manufactured housing, and prefabricated construction materials, which means more factory jobs and housing. These initiatives will create more affordable housing that are still vibrant and beautiful places to call home. CAR was also involved in the long and tumultuous battles over regulation of statewide building codes in fire resiliency and green energy. A late bill to avert housing and property tax measures headed to the Colorado state ballot box. Our focus is always to ensure affordability and viable housing markets for the future so that all Coloradans have an opportunity to generate wealth through homeownership and enable consumers to have choices.

Finally, several pieces of legislation addressed wildfire mitigation and improved the insurance process after the terrible tragedies of the Marshall Fire this past December. The legislature is funding matching local grants for wildfire mitigation projects, improving the health of our forests, regulating controlled burns, extending the individual property owner wildfire mitigation credits, and improving our tree nurseries.

CAR is also happy to see the incredible focus on post-disaster relief. These bills focused on: allowing property owners whose homes have been destroyed a process for voting while they wait to rebuild; bills that begin to reform the insurance process to provide better navigation and communication between natural disaster victims and insurance companies as they submit requests for coverage of costs; and bills that help provide financial support during the rebuilding process and start to address the problem of underinsurance. Unfortunately, we all know the next disaster is something we all must prepare for in times of extreme drought, changing weather patterns, and a decreasing water supply throughout the state.

For a complete report on CAR’s involvement in the 2022 Legislative session, check out the next issue of Colorado REALTOR® Magazine.