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Air Resources Board Targets California's Industrial Properties 

By: Toby Burke, senior director of state and local affairs, NAIOP Winter 2017/2018 Issue

California’s Air Resources Board is considering an indirect source rule that would hold building owners and/or tenants responsible for reducing greenhouse gas emissions from trucks and other mobile sources that service their facilities.

Advocacy Articles From Previous Issues

Construction Defects Litigation Reform in Colorado

By: Kathie Barstnar, executive director, NAIOP Colorado Fall 2017 Issue
Five years, a coalition of more than 55 organizations and 41 mayors, nearly $900,000 spent on social media and communications, and countless hours at the negotiating table finally resulted in victory around the issue of “construction defects litigation reform” in Colorado.

A Regulatory Framework for a New Administration

By: Alex Ford, director of federal affairs, NAIOP Summer 2017 Issue
Uncertainty about how the Trump administration will fulfill its promises to vastly decrease the number of federal regulations is creating uncertainty for the CRE industry.

Building a Transit Army: How MARTA Army Is Working To Improve Atlanta's Bus Stops

By: Andrew Carpenter, tech reporter, Mobility Lab Summer 2017 Issue
Transit advocacy doesn’t have to move slowly through layers of bureaucracy: in Atlanta, advocates have been mobilizing to improve bus stops in their own neighborhoods.

National Groups Shift Focus to Cities

By: Toby Burke, senior director of state and local affairs, NAIOP Spring 2017 Issue
NAIOP and its members must be on the lookout for local initiatives driven by national organizations that could impact commercial real estate.

How the Endangered Species Act May Impact Commercial Development

By: William T. Acton, vice president, and Ryan A. Slack, senior project manager, Civil & Environmental Consultants, Inc. Winter 2016/2017 Issue
Developers must understand how federal and state regulatory policies may delay the real estate development process.

NAIOP Arizona Blocks Energy Benchmarking Ordinance

By: Tim Lawless, president, NAIOP Arizona Fall 2016
NAIOP’s Arizona chapter, asserting that “shaming” building owners is not productive, formed a coalition that helped pass legislation to preempt cities from requiring owners to report building energy consumption.

Landmark Legislative Victory Makes Tax Extenders Permanent

By: Thomas J. Bisacquino, president and CEO, NAIOP Summer 2016
NAIOP’s efforts helped lead to the passage of the PATH Act of 2015, which makes permanent several critical CRE-related tax provisions, providing increased predictability for investment decisions.

Congress Finally Acts on Transportation Investments

By: John Bryant, senior director of federal affairs, NAIOP Spring 2016
NAIOP support helped lead to the passage of a long-term transportation bill, the FAST Act, that will fund U.S. highways and transit systems for the next five years.

New Federal Water Rule Creates Confusion for Developers

By: John Bryant, senior director of federal affairs, NAIOP Winter 2015/2016
A new rule that aims to clearly define which waters are federally protected results in more confusion than clarity.

Banking Regulations Could Mean Trouble For Construction Financing

By: Aquiles Suarez, vice president, government affairs, NAIOP Fall 2015
New regulations have made lending to commercial real estate development more costly for financial institutions.

Commercial Real Estate Advocacy and the Energy Debate

By: John Bryant, senior director for federal affairs, NAIOP Summer 2015
NAIOP has helped build a coalition that supports sound energy policy for the built environment.

Tax Reform Alive and Well Within Statehouses

By: Toby Burke, senior director of state and local affairs, NAIOP Spring 2015
The tax reform debate is still going strong in state legislatures across the nation, and NAIOP and its members must remain engaged.

Like-Kind Exchanges on the Tax Reform Chopping Block

By: Aquiles Suarez, vice president of government affairs, NAIOP Winter 2014
Prior to the 2014 elections, key members of Congress critical to advancing comprehensive tax reform put forth several proposals that raised concerns for the commercial real estate industry. One of these was the elimination of what are known as “like-kind” exchanges under the current Section 1031 of the tax code.

New Rule Could Change Landscape Regarding Protected Waters

By: John Bryant, senior director for federal affairs, NAIOP Fall 2014
The question of who has control over our nation’s bodies of water has been debated among landowners, the federal government, and state and local authorities for years. Developers attempting to clarify which bodies of water receive federal protection, which are under the control of the states and which are unregulated have frequently been baffled. On numerous occasions, the U.S. Supreme Court has weighed in, but confusion remains.

NAIOP San Diego Instrumental in Overturning Linkage Fee Increase

By: Toby Burke, senior director of state and local affairs, NAIOP Summer 2014
NAIOP San Diego achieved an important legislative victory this spring. The chapter successfully organized a coalition of more than 50 companies and business organizations, the Jobs Coalition, which led the recent “Stop the Jobs Tax” effort to overturn an ordinance adopted by the San Diego City Council.

A Congressional Perspective: Representative Gary G. Miller

By: Rep. Gary G. Miller, R-Calif., vice chairman of the U.S. House of Representatives Financial Services Committee Spring 2014
Republican Rep. Gary G. Miller represents California’s 31st Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives. He is vice chairman of the Financial Services Committee and a senior member of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. Development magazine recently spoke with Miller about various policies and politics that have the potential to impact the commercial real estate industry in 2014 and beyond.

Terrorism Risk Insurance Program an Industry Priority in 2014

By: Aquiles Suarez, vice president of government affairs, NAIOP Winter 2013
The U.S. Capitol was consumed this fall with budget showdowns, government shutdowns and legislative gridlock. As a result, public policy issues of importance to the commercial real estate industry — including the future direction of tax policy, energy legislation and transportation funding — have been left unresolved. As we move into 2014, we can add to this list of unfinished business another item: renewal of the federal terrorism risk insurance program.

Koontz Decision Moves the Needle in Favor of Property Owners

By: Toby Burke, senior director of state and local affairs, NAIOP. Fall 2013
State and local governments, through their individual permitting and regulatory processes, play a critical role in the size, scope, and cost of all types of commercial real estate projects, from new development to the restoration of existing commercial buildings and warehouses. With 50 states and more than 89,000 local units of government in the U.S., the permitting and regulatory structure can be complicated, unpredictable, inconsistent, and/or bureaucratic, depending on the local jurisdiction.

NAIOP Participates in Congressional Briefing

By: Jill Talley, communications senior manager, NAIOP. Fall 2013
The “2013 State of the Real Estate Industry” luncheon and briefing held on July 17 — organized by NAIOP and hosted by the National Real Estate Organizations (NREO) — brought together trade associations, industry consultants, and nearly 100 congressional staffers to focus on the impact of real estate as a driver in economic growth.

Needed Infrastructure Spending on Ports Attracting Increased Bipartisan Attention

By: Aquiles Suarez, vice president of government affairs, NAIOP Summer 2013
Often overlooked in partisan fights over government spending are matters where there exists bipartisan agreement. Congress’ failure to agree on the proper size of government hampers movement on issues where most agree government plays an instrumental role. An example of this is the need for increased spending relating to infrastructure in and around our nation’s ports and inland waterways.

Working Toward Greater Transparency in Local Government Budgeting

By: Stephanie Wolf, assistant account executive, Harrington Company Summer 2013
In an ongoing effort to discover and make more transparent the real drivers behind rising real estate taxes on properties owned or developed by its members — and paid, more often than not, by the thousands of business tenants they house — the NAIOP Minnesota Chapter has not only gained support among state legislators, but even won over some of the local government officials most directly affected.

Will “Regular Order” Lead to Big Policy Changes?

By: Aquiles Suarez, vice president of government affairs, NAIOP. Spring 2013
At the close of 2012, many feared the United States would fall off the so-called “fiscal cliff” — the combination of scheduled tax increases, deep mandated across-the-board federal budget cuts (known as “sequestration”), and expiration of numerous tax provisions which, if occurring at once, could have caused another recession.

Massachusetts Leading the Nation in Regulatory Reform

By: April Anderson Lamoureux, Assistant Secretary of Economic Development for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Spring 2013
In March 2012, Massachusetts launched a first-in-the-nation effort to systematically reform our public rule-making process and the way our state views government regulation and its impact on our economy.

State Elections Provide Opportunities to Advance Economic Growth

By: Toby Burke, senior director of state and local affairs, NAIOP Winter 2012
This article discusses the role of NAIOP and newly elected state legislators in advancing economic growth.
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Approaching the Edge

By: Aquiles Suarez, vice president of government affairs, NAIOP Fall 2012
By now, anyone watching the struggles of the political class in Washington, D.C. in dealing with our national government’s deteriorating financial condition has heard pundits warn of the “fiscal cliff” awaiting us at the end of 2012 and into early 2013. The term, used by Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, refers to the economic impact of expiring tax cuts, mandatory, across-the-board budget reductions, and another stalemate over raising the national debt limit.
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Transportation Reauthorization Needs Long-Term Funding Solution

By: John R. Bryant, senior director of federal affairs, NAIOP Summer 2012
The last multi-year transportation reauthorization, known as the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU), was originally passed as a bi-partisan bill in July of 2005. The reauthorization was widely seen at the time as a step in the right direction, though critics claimed that it was woefully underfunded to meet the growing needs of our infrastructure.
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Beyond the Beltway: Grassroots Programs Impact Public Policy

By: Toby Burke, senior director of state and local affairs, NAIOP Spring 2012
NAIOP members play a critical role in advocating the priorities of the commercial real estate industry before government officials at every level. Only through education and understanding can your elected representative support NAIOP’s priorities for commercial real estate during public policy debates.

Tax Policy Fights Will Continue Beyond 2012 Elections

By: Aquiles Suarez, vice president of government affairs, NAIOP Winter 2011
As 2011 comes to a close, Congress will most likely be deciding what to do with deficit reduction proposals, if any, arising from the so-called “Supercommittee” that was created in the wake of the debt-ceiling debate that consumed Washington in July.

Senate Committee Passes Energy Bill

By: John Bryant, senior director of federal affairs, NAIOP Fall 2011
The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee fast-tracked a bill that creates new standards and efficiency targets for new construction. Unlike past drafts of similar legislation, The Energy Savings and Industrial Competitiveness Act of 2011 approaches the issue by calling on the DOE to set efficiency targets through a formal rulemaking process.

Commercial and Residential Outlooks Presented in Real Estate Caucus Events on Capitol Hill

By: Kathryn Hamilton, vice president for marketing and communications, NAIOP Summer 2011
“The markets are improving on the edges, worthy credit is becoming more accessible and industries are getting back on their feet,” said United States Congressman Richard Neal (D-Mass.) in his opening comments at a “State of the Industry” luncheon and briefing held in February 2011 on Capitol Hill.

Tax Reform: The Debate Begins

By: Aquiles Suarez, vice president, government affairs, NAIOP Spring 2011
On January 20, 2011, Michigan Republican Dave Camp, the new chairman of the Ways and Means Committee in the House of Representatives, held the first of what will surely be many congressional hearings on reforming the U.S. tax code.

A Pollution Diet For the Chesapeake Bay Watershed

By: Toby Burke, senior director of state and local affairs, NAIOP Winter 2010
This article discusses EPA’s approach for cleaning up the Chesapeake Bay through state water implementation plans and the effect on existing commercial properties and future development.

This Year’s “Lame Duck” Congress May Not Be So Lame

By: Aquiles Suarez, vice president of government affairs, NAIOP Fall 2010
Congress often reconvenes in the aftermath of an election, prior to newly-elected members being sworn-in the following January, to address unfinished legislative business.

Congress Proposes Incentives to Increase Energy Efficiency for Buildings

By: John Bryant, senior director for federal affairs, NAIOP Summer 2010
In recent years, the development industry has seen Congress become increasingly involved with legislation related to energy efficiency for buildings. With climate change and carbon reduction bills becoming more prevalent, buildings have emerged as a prime target for scrutiny.

Florida’s Amendment 4 - Act Now or Pay Later

By: Toby Burke, senior director of state and local affairs, NAIOP Spring 2010
A proposed amendment to the Florida constitution, known as Amendment 4 (previously known as the “Florida Hometown Democracy Amendment”), has been certified and will appear on the state election ballot on November 2, 2010.
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