Happy Thanksgiving! We hope you all had a wonderful relaxing holiday spent with family and friends.

Recess: When Congress has recessed, business has been put "on hold." For example, Congress often holds business sessions only on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, so legislators may visit their constituents over a long weekend that includes a work day. At such times, Congress has not adjourned but is, instead, recessed. Congress also recesses the week of a federal holiday like Thanksgiving.

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Just a Few More Days to Take Action!

We’re almost there, just a handful of you have not taken action on the Mortgage Debt Forgiveness CFA. We need 100% participation from FPCs, so if you have not done so, please take action now by clicking the button below.

A BIG thank you to the following states where 100% of the FPCs have taken action: Alaska, Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, Guam, Hawaii, Idaho, Kansas, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, Minnesota, Montana, North Dakota, Nevada, New York, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Virgin Islands, West Virginia, Wisconsin and Wyoming. As you know, without action by Congress on mortgage debt cancellation relief, distressed homeowners will have to pay tax on “phantom income” from forgiven debt. NAR wants to prevent this, so please urge your legislator to extend this tax relief now. For talking points and further information on the Mortgage Debt Forgiveness Tax Relief Act, click here.

VIDEO: The Election Impact on Realtors

To watch NAR Deputy Chief Lobbyist Jamie Gregory discuss how REALTORS® are well-positioned after 2014 elections thanks to bipartisan appeal of real estate issues, please watch the video HERE.

Welcome to the New Class of FPCs

After the mid-term elections, 103 new FPCs have been nominated by their states to serve the 114^th Congress. It’s going to be an exciting term with much on the horizon. As we move into 2015, we are going to have one of our most challenging years yet.  Mortgage Interest Deduction is part of the discussion and changes may be coming to important housing programs that we will be weighing in on.

For those FPCs who will not be returning, thank you for so generously giving your time to one of the most important programs at NAR. We have seen a number of successes over the last few years thanks to your help.  We hope we can still count on you to be the voice of realestate in your state as part of NAR’s broader grassroots efforts. Thank you again for your service.

TRIA Lobbying Day on Capitol Hill

On November 19, the Coalition to Insure Against Terrorism (CIAT) conducted a lobbying day on Capitol Hill, meeting with over thirty key members of Congress to urge for a long-term reauthorization of the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act of 2002, or "TRIA."  As you are aware, TRIA is currently set to expire on December 31, 2014, unless Congress takes action to reauthorize it.  NAR is a steering committee member of CIAT, and spearheaded several of the meetings on Capitol Hill, including some with members of the House Financial Services Committee and the House Intelligence Committee.

Accompanying NAR Government Affairs personnel on these meetings was 2015 Commercial Legislation and Regulatory Advisory Board Chairman Dan Wagner, from Illinois, who stressed the practical impact not renewing TRIA would have on commercial real estate across the country, and the detrimental effects that in turn would have on the economy as a whole.  The message sent to the Members was clear: TRIA is a program that costs taxpayers nothing and keeps terrorism risk insurance affordable and available, while providing a framework for economic recovery in the aftermath of a catastrophic terrorist attack.  Reauthorizing it for only a short-term will cause disruptions in the market and could lead to coverage becoming more expensive and less available, resulting in problems for commercial financing, so a long-term reauthorization is the best option for the country.

NAR continues to work with CIAT to advocate for a long-term TRIA reauthorization, passed as soon as possible.

FPC Spotlight

A big congratulations to Crystal DaCosta, FPC to Congresswoman Karen Bass (CA-37), who was recently named 2014 Realtor of The Year by the Beverly Hills/Greater Los Angeles Association of Realtors. Thanks for all of your efforts Crystal. We very much appreciate all you do.

**FPC Weekly Newsletters are now online!