Both the U.S. House and Senate have returned from a two-week recess that concluded on Monday, April 8. The break followed a busy March where all twelve Fiscal Year (FY) 2024 funding bills for all federal agencies – including HUD, VA, and the USDA – were passed before their midnight deadlines on March 8 and March 22, respectively, in a “two-tiered” approach. As individual House Republicans continued to resign from their respective seats, the party achieved the slimmest majority in the chamber in modern U.S. history.  MBA has testified twice at the request of key House congressional committees since the start of the year. And MBA members advocated before their elected officials during our annual National Advocacy Conference – including our traditional and separate/tailored CREF track. 

Top 3 Things to Know from Washington

1. Appropriators Reach Deal on a Second Fiscal Year (FY) 2024 “Minibus” Funding Package; NFIP to be extended until October 2024. 

The House and Senate passed the final six appropriations bills, which contains $1.2 trillion in funding through the end of FY24 for a remaining set of federal agencies including the Pentagon, the Treasury Department, IRS, and other key financial regulators, the Homeland Security, State, Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education Departments – and the Congress itself (via Legislative Branch appropriations), in an expediated fashion on March 22nd. The Further Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2024 included the extension of the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) authorities at FEMA retroactively from September 30, 2023 through September 30, 2024. Full text of the bill is available here. 

Agencies such the Departments of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), VA, and Agriculture (USDA) and their federal housing programs used by MBA members were funded through the end of FY24 by enactment of a prior “minibus” bill before midnight on March 8, the potential enactment of all twelve appropriations bills before May of this year would negate a one percent “across-the-board” cut (“rescission”) of all discretionary federal spending (per the terms of the Fiscal Responsibility Act (FRA) enacted last June). Those potential FRA limits on defense and non-defense spending were agreed to in the 2023 bargain made to suspend the federal debt ceiling through January 1, 2025.
 

2. MBA Opposes White House’s Proposed Imposition of Rent Control on LIHTC financed multifamily properties

On Tuesday, April 2, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) implemented a 10% cap on the annual income limit increases for a broad group of low-income residents at properties supported by the Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC).  The change is part of a broader White House campaign designed to impose rent control-related measures on federally-supported programs such as LIHTC, despite the body of evidence that similar policies have discouraged affordable housing construction and distorted market conditions at the state and local level.  MBA and other leading multifamily housing industry groups strongly disapprove of this potential move. MBA’s President and CEO Bob Broeksmit, CMB offered the following individual statement here.
 
This comes at a time when MBA’s Mortgage Action Alliance (MAA) has a call to action to encourage Senators to support and encourage a vote on a House-passed tax package that contains positive LIHTC program enhancements.  H.R. 7024, crafted by House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Jason Smith (R-MO) and Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden (D-OR), passed the House by an impressive bipartisan vote of 357-70 in late January. Republican Senators have balked at considering the bill (including its LIHTC title) in its current form unless the bill can first be examined and “marked up” by the Senate Finance Committee, which holds primary jurisdiction on all tax matters.
 

3. MBA’s Chief Economist testifies before House Financial Services Subcommittee

On Wednesday, March 20, MBA Chief Economist Mike Fratantoni, Ph.D., testified before the House Financial Services Committee’s Housing and Insurance Subcommittee at a hearing entitled, “The Characteristics and Challenges of Today’s Homebuyers.” 

Fratantoni reviewed current data on various aspects of the residential mortgage market with the subcommittee members, but also examined  trends in the rental market, including that for single-family rentals (SFR), housing supply concerns, and regulatory and insurance availability challenges facing our industry.

Fratantoni fielded questions on a wide range of topics, including: the efficacy of the Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program, inflation and its impact on the housing market, causes of the housing supply shortfall, local zoning strategies, and the rising cost of insurance due to wildfires and other natural disasters. Mike’s written statement is available here. Click here to view a recording of the LIVESTREAM of this hearing.

Current Call to Action

Tell Your Senators to Push for Action on H.R. 7024, the House-passed Tax Package
A Mortgage Action Alliance (MAA) Call to Action was launched in February asking elected officials in the Senate to support housing affordability by calling for swift action by the full Senate on H.R. 7024. In late January, the full U.S. House overwhelmingly approved the “Tax Relief for American Families and Workers Act of 2024” (H.R. 7024), by a bipartisan vote of 357 to 70. The package, agreed upon via negotiations between Ways and Means Committee Chairman Jason Smith (R-MO) and Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden (D-OR), includes important Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program enhancements, as well as disaster relief, revisions to the Child Tax Credit, and other business provisions (e.g., favorable changes to business interest deductibility, small business expensing, and bonus depreciation).

The bill restores a LIHTC ceiling increase from 9 percent to 12.5 percent for calendar years 2023 through 2025, thereby allowing states to allocate more credits for affordable housing projects, and temporarily lowers the Private Activity Bond (PAB) threshold test from 50 percent to 30 percent for 4 Percent LIHTC property projects with an issue date before 2026. The changes, if enacted, are estimated to help produce an additional 200,000 rental units nationwide over the next two years.

Act now and ask your Senators to proceed to consideration of H.R. 7024 and its key provisions – like the LIHTC changes. 

Burton C. Wood Legislative Service Award

MBA presented its annual Burton C. Wood Legislative Service Award to Christine (Chrissi) Rhea, President/CEO of the Mortgage Investors Group (MIG), at MBA's 2024 National Advocacy Conference (NAC) last month. The award is given annually to an MBA member in recognition of his or her sustained superior legislative service to the association and the real estate finance industry.

Chrissi is the former Chair of the Residential Board of Governors (RESBOG) where she was instrumental in engaging MBA to fight the abusive use of trigger leads - a key priority for MBA’s residential members. The introduction of MBA-supported legislation on this topic was a direct result of the collective efforts of attendees who participated during NAC23. In addition, Chrissi played an active role during last year’s “Advocacy in August” campaign and met with Congressman John Rose (R-TN), lead Republican House sponsor of the trigger leads bill, outside of Nashville to thank him for his efforts.

For years, Chrissi has been an avid Mortgage Action Alliance (MAA) member and a top MORPAC contributor. She has also expanded MBA’s advocacy efforts company-wide, initiating both MAA and MORPAC company campaigns at MIG. Congratulations, Chrissi!

National Advocacy Conference 2024

Once again, MBA hosted a tailored CREF track meeting with several key lawmakers and regulatory officials. Roughly half of the 100 CREF industry member advocates attended and pressed lawmakers on CREF policy priorities ranging from property insurance to low-income housing tax credits to FHA programmatic improvements. Elected officials and their top aides heard from commercial/multifamily finance industry professionals about issues that impact the CREF markets across the country.

The CREF specified track registrants had the opportunity to opt in to join their state delegations on Capitol Hill and/or to hear directly from four key members of the House Ways and Means Committee in the Capitol Visitors Center (CVC) – Mike Carey (R-OH), Claudia Tenney (R-NY), Jimmy Gomez (D-CA), and Jimmy Panetta (D-CA) – on real estate tax issues such as the LIHTC, a proposed middle-income (or workforce) housing tax credit (MIHTC), and proposed office conversion tax credits. Those CREF members also heard from FDIC Director Jonathan McKernan, staff from the FHFA, and property/casualty insurance experts.

CREF Track Attendees meet with Rep. Mike Carey (R-OH), Rep. Claudia Tenney (R-NY), Rep. Jimmy Gomez (D-CA), Rep. Jimmy Panetta (D-CA), and Senator Sherrod Brown's (D-OH) Deputy Chief of Staff, Jeremy Hekhuis.

CREF Track Attendees hear from Gary Sullivan, Senior Director, Emerging Risks, American Property Casualty Insurance Association, Jonathan McKernan, Member of the Board of Directors, (FDIC), and Siobhan Kelly, Associate Director Office of Multifamily Analytics and Policy, OMAP.

Armed with the results of those direct constituent visits made during the NAC, MBA’s lobbyists will continue to advocate for action on CREF industry issues that impact our members’ business operations, end users, and the communities they serve. A special thanks to our commercial/multifamily event sponsors: BWE and Northmarq. 

MAA Action Week 2024

Participate in MBA’s annual Mortgage Action Alliance (MAA) Action Week campaign, April 29-May 3. SIGN UP today and promote the importance of advocacy within your company or organization. This industry-wide campaign allows ALL of us to take part and engage in the legislative and regulatory process on issues that directly impact real estate finance professionals. 

MAA is a tool for industry professionals to speak directly to policymakers at the federal and state levels when important legislation is up for debate. Having regular contact with your lawmakers and their staff members through MAA’s Calls to Action is critical to ensure your elected officials understand how policy issues affect you, your customers, and the communities you serve. Membership in MAA can make a difference in how YOU and your company drive positive change by adding your voice to our collective efforts. There is strength in numbers, and when a large number of people weigh in, policymakers pay attention.

During Action Week, MBA’s Legislative and Political Affairs team will host MAA’s Quarterly Webinar Series on Thursday, May 2, at 2:00 PM ET. Register here. Hear key policy updates – along with case studies describing how your participation helps the MBA staff advocate more effectively on behalf of our association’s members to help achieve pro-industry outcomes. 

MORPAC

On March 18, MORPAC hosted its annual fundraising dinner for top supporters to officially kick off NAC24, raising over $50,000. Since January 1, 2023, MORPAC has been able to raise and disburse over $1.3 million in the 2024 election cycle to incumbents’ re-election efforts, leadership PACs, and national party campaign committees. Stay tuned for MORPAC’s Mid-Year Report, which will detail the campaign’s progress through June 30, set to launch by end of summer. You can also view MORPAC’s 2023 Year End Report.

Save the date for MORPAC’s 7th annual Action Week, June 3-7, 2024. In a divided Congress, our bipartisan advocacy efforts have never been more important. Help us make an impact by actively participating in the political process and showing your support for our industry’s PAC during this important week. 

Check out the highlights from last year’s campaign. Interested in participating, please contact Erin Reilly or call 202-557-2751 for additional details.

Connecting at Conferences

MBA Advocacy hosted signature advocacy receptions and fundraisers during MBA’s Q1 conference season, which included events such as the 2024 Commercial/Multifamily Finance Convention & Expo (held in San Diego, CA). Reception attendees had the opportunity to hear directly from MBA leadership and staff about our ongoing industry priorities, as well as the importance of engagement and contributing directly to MORPAC.

Industry advocates gathered during advocacy events at MBA-sponsored conferences

Upcoming MBA Conferences 

MAA and MORPAC will host advocacy receptions at the following MBA-sponsored conferences:

Secondary and Capital Markets Conference and Expo
May 19-22, 2024
Marriott Marquis, New York, NY

Chairman's Conference
June 9-12, 2024
Ritz Carlton Bacara, Santa Barbara, CA

Annual Convention and Expo
October 27-30, 2024
Colorado Convention Center, Denver, CO