| THE GADFLY | |||||||||||||||||||||
| June 2015 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| The NAR Government Affairs Directors Newsletter | |||||||||||||||||||||
| The GADFly is produced by the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® to provide Government Affairs Directors (GADs) at state and local REALTOR® associations with tools, news and information to help you serve your members. To add one of your staff members to the distribution list, or to be removed, contact Kyle Lambert London at klambertlondon@realtors.org/202-383-1203. | |||||||||||||||||||||
| In This Issue... | |||||||||||||||||||||
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| Mark Your Calendars | |||||||||||||||||||||
 Community Outreach Grant Deadline is June 15Visit REALTOR Action Center to learn more about application deadlines, funding levels, and changes to grant regulations. |
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| Diversity Grants – Mobilize your diverse membership to lead your association in to the future. Apply for a grant of up to $5,000 | |||||||||||||||||||||
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| Smart Growth Grants – Shape your community into the most attractive, livable, sustainable place it can be. Apply for a grant of up to $15,000. | |||||||||||||||||||||
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| Housing Opportunity Grants – Launch innovative activities to make affordable housing more readily available in your community. Apply for a grant of up to $15,000. | |||||||||||||||||||||
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| 2015 Game Changer Applications – Round Two - Due July 31 The Game Changer Program was modified in 2015 to include two rounds of grants. Additionally, the maximum amount for these grants was changed to $15,000. If you have a Game Changing idea, please consider filling out an application. Applications must be received by July 31. |
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| Registration Now Open for 2015 REALTOR® Broker Summits Travel in one day and out the next at any of the three REALTOR® Broker Summit events taking place this fall! REALTOR® Broker Summits are designed exclusively for designated broker, and broker owner members to come together and learn from presenters, panels and peer leaders in the industry about current conditions while looking to the future of real estate. Topics to be covered include safety, legal issues, economic trends, industry tech tools, data analytics and more! Visit realtor.org/BrokerSummit to learn more about the program, speakers, and registration options. Seats are filling up fast, take advantage of our $99 early-bird registration option while you still can! Attend one or more of these great events at a great price. |
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| NOVEMBER ELECTIONS ARE RAPIDLY APPROACHING! November 3rd Election Day is fast upon us and your friendly NAR Campaign Services Team is ready and standing by to assist you with any candidate independent expenditure or ballot measure campaigns you want to engage in. With only 4 months until election day, we’d like to talk with you ASAP to be sure we’re giving you the best possible options for campaign plans and resources. Contact Julienne Uhlich (juhlich@realtors.org) and Mitchell Norton (mnorton@realtors.org). |
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| Mobile Alert Subscriber Goal | |||||||||||||||||||||
Have you gotten our text messages?  The Broker Involvement Council has teamed with the REALTOR® Party Member Involvement Committee (RPMIC) to increase the number of REALTOR® Party Mobile Alert subscribers. Their goal is to recruit 100,000 new text subscribers by Annual Convention. We're making great strides (57,009 subscribers) but we definitely need your help in each state. Please review their contest breakdown of goals by large, medium and small states. Check out how the 5 ways you can assist them in increase mobile subscribers. |
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| TRID Rule Update | |||||||||||||||||||||
| CFPB Proposes Two-Month Extension TRID Rule On June 24, 2015, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued a proposed amendment to delay implementation of the RESPA/TILA Integration or TRID rule due to issues with the Administrative Procedures Act and also to push implementation further into the fall after school starts. The CFPB’s proposal would move the implementation date to October 3, 2015, rather than the earlier required date of August 1. A public comment period on the proposal runs through July 7 and NAR plans to submit comments. NAR has been leading the effort to ensure an effective implementation of the TRID regulation and remains committed to educating REALTORS® on the rule changes and to working with CFPB and industry partners to make the transition to the new rules as efficient as possible. |
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| Keeping Up with the Drones | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Keep Up with the Latest Drone Info! Please visit www.realtor.org/drone for all the latest information covering unmanned aerial vehicles, UAVs, or drones. You will find an updated list of companies that have Section 333 waivers, a new ‘Window on the Law’ covering drone use, and information about a July 9, 2015 webinar about how to apply for a Section 333 waiver. Commercial operations of UAV technology are prohibited under FAA regulation without the Section 333 waiver. |
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| RPAC Legal Requirements | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Federal Tax Return Filing Requirements for State PACs This is a reminder to State RPAC committees that must comply with the annual IRS information and tax return filing requirements. Generally, a state PAC must file Federal Form 990 if it has gross receipts of $25,000 or more, or in some cases (that is, if it files reports with a state campaign finance agency that requires reporting certain information about PAC contributors and expenditures), if it has gross receipts of $100,000 or more. If the PAC has taxable income of more than $100 it must also file Federal Form 1120-POL and pay any tax due. Taxable income for a PAC is income other than contributions made to the PAC, such as investment income. Serious penalties for failing to file Form 990 may be imposed, including fines of up to $10,000 for each year the PAC fails to file Form 990 and 5% of any tax due for failure to file Form 1120-POL. State PACs must also file with the IRS Federal Form 8871 when they are formed and may be required also to file periodic reports on Form 8872 unless they are exempted from that requirement, which most State PACs will be. State PACs should also check on and comply with any state tax filing requirements as well. State PACs should consult with their tax advisers for more information. See also the links below from the IRS website addressing these federal tax-filing requirements for political organizations, including State PACs: |
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| RPAC News | |||||||||||||||||||||
| New President’s Circle Targets On June 15 RPAC launched three new President’s Circle Targets. Rep. Bill Keating (MA-9), Rep. Patrick Tiberi (OH-12) and Rep. Frank Lucas (OK-3) are the newest REALTOR® Party Champions in the program. To invest in these or another current President’s Circle target, please click here. As a reminder, the full $2,000 of your President’s Circle commitment is due by September 30. |
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| PACtion! Powered by Auction Frogs- Your new online fundraising tool! “PACtion!” powered by our partners at Auction Frogs will bring your RPAC auctions into the 21st century with cutting edge technology and the ease of online bidding. The cost to host each auction is $650, but you can apply for a grant to help with the cost of your auction. Interested? Click here to fill out a brief form and get started today! Please consult your legal counsel before proceeding with an online RPAC fundraising auction. |
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| RPAC Accelerated Recognition Program Do you have members on a payment plan through the end of the fundraising year but want them to be recognized as a Major Investor NOW? RPAC can help with the Accelerated Recognition Program. Just send the initial 30% of the full investment to NAR, enter a pledge in the PAC Management System for the remaining 70% that remains in your state and your new Major Investor will be recognized. |
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| New RPAC Hall of Fame Deadline! The RPAC Fundraising Trustees voted during the 2015 REALTORS® Legislative Meetings & Trade Expo to change the RPAC Hall of Fame eligibility deadline to December 31 each year. Eligible members and staff must meet the $25,000 minimum threshold by the end of the previous fundraising year. The deadline for the nomination form to be submitted to NAR by the state remains January 31 of each year. To access the guidelines and nomination form, please visit RPAC Hall of Fame. |
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| NEW RPAC State Awards 1. Most Improved Overall Fundraising This new recognition embodies the purpose of the recently passed RPAC Fundraising Goal Policies by rewarding fundraising success at all three levels of the association. Beginning with the 2015 Fundraising year, the top three (3) state/territories in each size category—small, medium and large—will be recognized for largest percentage increase in total receipts (local, state and national) over the previous fundraising year. Receipts must be recorded in the PAC Management System to count toward this award. 2. Highest Percentage of National Fundraising Goal Funds sent to NAR above and beyond the RPAC Fundraising Goal have always been used judiciously to advance the REALTOR® Party and support REALTOR® champions. The RPAC Fundraising Trustees want to continue to recognize states that are able to send funds above and beyond their RPAC Fundraising Goal. Beginning this year the top three (3) state/territories in each size category—small, medium and large—will be recognized for having highest percentage of their RPAC Fundraising Goal. These awards will be presented during the RPAC Awards Ceremony held during the 2016 REALTOR® Legislative Meetings & Trade Expo. |
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| From NAR’s Economist Outlook Blog: | |||||||||||||||||||||
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| David Stark Public Affairs Director, Bay East Association of REALTORS® |
What a difference a year makes.
Here are three things I’ve learned while serving as your GAD Chair:
First, NAR wants us to succeed: The special training in DC for new GADs and Association Executives; GAD info on the REALTOR® Action Center; NAR’s Field Rep program; the Campaign Management Training program; candidate and issues campaign resources and our own GAD Institute. These are just a few examples of NAR investing in our success.
Next, it’s a great time to be a GAD: I made this statement at the mid-year meeting in 2014 while talking about the then-new Core Standards. A year later I still believe it. Working on the Advocacy and Consumer Outreach portions of our Core Standards compliance really drove this home. For many GADs the Core Standards means moving from the shadows to the center of the REALTOR® association value proposition.
Finally, you get out of it what you put into it: Working with the GAD Advisory Group and NAR staff this year taught me that this group not only takes their day jobs very seriously but also their role planning for the GAD meetings and institute. The proof is in the great experiences we had during our meetings and breakout sessions in San Francisco last fall and in Washington DC this spring and what we will experience in Salt Lake City.
For the last few words of my final GADFly column, I thank the GAD Nation for the opportunity to learn from all of you and, through this column, to reflect on what it means to me to be a GAD.
| Follow the REALTOR® Action Center! |
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GAD Directory |
SAVE THE DATE
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2015 GAD Institute July 15-18, in Salt Lake City, Utah (Registration is open; room block is closed. Click here for a complete program listing). |
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REALTORS® Conference and Expo November 13, - 16, 2015 San Diego, California |