When a new budget provision in Maryland’s Anne Arundel County threatened to dramatically raise the statutory allowance for increasing new development connection fees, it got the attention of the local REALTORS®. Not only would such an increase stifle production of sorely needed housing in the Annapolis region, but the proposal seemed to fly in the face of the County Council’s recent policy assertions in favor of new housing production. Tapping into the REALTOR® Party’s Advocacy Everywhere, the Anne Arundel County Association of REALTORS® (AACAR) demonstrated public opposition to the fee increase for new developments, and the bill was withdrawn.
AACAR Government Affairs Director Max Gross had observed that the members of the County Council did not seem strongly invested in this particular budget provision. It also seemed distinctly counter to the council’s own goals and recent legislation, such as the passage of two bills to increase moderately-priced dwelling-units and incentivize increased density, and the creation of new zones approved for mixed-use development. He concluded, therefore, that the bill, which was projected to increase connection fees by more than $1K per development project, would be especially vulnerable to public pressure.
Gross is new to the Government Affairs Director position and had recently learned about Advocacy Everywhere – along with the rest of the REALTOR® Party’s advocacy resources – in GAD training. He talked it over with his Association Executive, then received authorization from his Legislative Committee to oppose the measure. With a phone call to the Advocacy Everywhere team at NAR, he applied for a call to action to be generated; with his review and approval, the call went live the following morning: first for those who had signed up for REALTOR® Party Mobile Alerts, and via email two hours later to the rest of the AACAR membership.
One hundred emails were sent in response, with every council member receiving at least one. Within hours, one of the lawmakers called to ask if the REALTORS® were behind all the emails; the following day, the local building association called with the same question, as council members were asking them, too. (The builders were grateful for the effort, notes Gross.) That evening, he testified at the county’s public budget hearings. Because all council members had received the email, which served as a clear explanatory memo, he was able to gloss over the basics and address the issue on a more collegial, less adversarial level. Shortly after, the bill was withdrawn from consideration.
The process was much simpler than Gross had expected: “Genuinely, this was so easy – I didn’t have to do much at all, because there’s a system in place and the folks at NAR are so knowledgeable and responsive.” Thanks to NAR’s effective and efficient program, he says, and to the engagement of AACAR leadership and the effort of members who made their voices heard, “We are slowly but surely making progress toward a better built environment with more ample housing in Anne Arundel County.”
To learn more about how the Anne Arundel County Association of REALTORS® is working to optimize conditions for the creation of more affordable housing, contact Government Affairs Director Max Gross at max@aacar.com or 410.544.4554.
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