The Colorado Association of Home Builders recognized Colorado Senator Michael Bennet’s co-sponsorship of S. 2155, the Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief and Consumer Protection Act. This National Association of Home Builders-supported legislation addresses the challenging credit conditions that home builders and home buyers continue to face. To learn more about the NAHB’s efforts to support this legislation, please visit https://www.nahb.org/en/news-and-publications/press-releases/2018/03/statement-from-nahb-chairman-randy-noel-on-senate-banking-bill.aspx. 

“Colorado’s home builders thank Senator Bennet for reaching across the aisle and working in a bipartisan manner to craft legislation that will spur job and economic growth by easing tight credit conditions on home builders, home buyers and consumers,” said Marc Towne, Chairman of the Colorado Association of Home Builders. 

“The Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief and Consumer Protection Act will provide important regulatory relief for midsize and regional banks, particularly community banks that are the most common source of lending for home construction and are also key providers of home mortgage loans. In Colorado, we are facing a housing affordability problem, and S.2155 will positively contribute to alleviating the constraints we face. We urge the Senate to promptly pass this important banking reform bill.”

CAHB Government Affairs

Updates:

HB18-1071 – Monitor – This bill was defeated in the state Senate. It would put into statute the decision on the Martinez case, which places health concerns as part of the criteria for COGCC decisions on oil and gas regulations, and would have significantly changed how Colorado regulates oil and gas impacts.

New Legislation:

The Government Affairs Committee took positions on the following bills at its recent meeting. 

HB18-1261—Oppose—This legislation would establish standards for arbitrators and create procedures for disclosures and disqualifications from arbitrations related to potential conflicts of interest. The GAC voted to oppose this legislation since it is an attempt to chill the use of professional arbitrators. If arbitration and other forms of dispute resolution are harder to use, far more issues will be taken to court, taking more time and costing more money for the parties involved.

HB18-1262—Oppose—This bill would require distribution of arbitration case history information from arbitration services providers. Similar to HB1261, this legislation seeks to create more needless and burdensome regulation on professional arbitrators in order to eventually limit the use of alternative-dispute resolution.

HB18-1266—Support—The bill would extend for 5 years and removes the term “pilot” from the existing career development success program, which supports school district and charter school courses for high school students who pursue an industry workforce certificate, internship or pre-apprenticeship program. The programs are important to the homebuilding industry and CAHB members to help develop a more skilled and ready workforce.

HB18-1267—Support—This legislation would provide a state income tax credit to an individual who retrofits or hires someone to retrofit the individual's residence to allow greater safety and accessibility due to a health condition or disability or to allow a senior to stay in their own home longer.

SB18-190—Support, with amendment—This bill would allow a board of county commissioners to delegate certain planning duties to the county planning commission. The CAHB is supporting this bill and working to amend the current language in order to allow a board to delegate platting to planning staff. Counties are currently required to have all subdivision steps heard and approved by boards. This creates an unnecessary delay in what should be a technical engineering process, resulting in decreased lot availability and corresponding increases in housing costs. Delegating to a planning commission would only happen after public hearings and action by a county board to approve a residential project.

In Case You Missed It:

Here are a few interesting media clips discussing Colorado’s homebuilding industry and housing markets.

Denver Business Journal— Denver-area growth-control measure gets go-ahead from Colorado Supreme Court—https://www.bizjournals.com/denver/news/2018/03/01/denver-area-growth-control-measure-gets-go-ahead.html 

Colorado Public Radio— More home construction finally on the way for Colorado?— https://durangoherald.com/articles/211545

Wall Street Journal—(Article features CAHB Chairman Marc Towne) With Lumber in Short Supply, Record Wood Costs Are Set to Juice Home Prices—https://www.wsj.com/articles/with-lumber-in-short-supply-record-wood-costs-are-set-to-juice-home-prices-1519916401

    

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