Earlier this week, more than 90 GBAR members and a collective 400 REALTOR® members from across the Commonwealth gathered at the Massachusetts State House in Boston for REALTOR® Day on the Hill. Annually, this event is a great opportunity for our members to meet with their legislators to voice opinions on a
variety of bills that have the potential to impact property owners and the real estate industry. Among the lawmakers who met with our members this year were Rep. Shawn Dooley, Rep. Denise Garlick, Rep. Jay Kaufman, Sen. Richard Ross, Rep. Jeffrey Roy, and Rep. Thomas Stanley.
The program featured a keynote address from Massachusetts State Senator Karen Spilka, who spoke to housing affordability concerns and emphasized that we need to do all we can to encourage new housing construction and help families afford new homes.
In this vein, we are actively seeking member volunteers to serve in the role of
GBAR Town Monitor for their hometown or a community in which they work, or as a
State Political Coordinator (SPC). In the role of Monitor, members agree to be the local eyes and ears for our association – paying attention to and reporting on issues and proposals being considered at town meeting, council gatherings, and municipal board/committee meetings, such as the Board of Health, Planning Board, and ZBA. Individuals who assume the role of an SPC will serve as liaisons between their state Senator and/or Representative and our association. Ideally, the SPCs will be those who have pre-existing relationships with a legislator and will be the REALTOR® organization’s primary face and contact to coordinate meetings with the public officials to discuss legislation and public policy issues.
By having GBAR members connected to and regularly communicating with state legislators, and others dedicated to monitoring discussions and votes at local government meetings, our association will be in a much better position to respond and/or get involved in matters impacting property rights, housing affordability, and construction or expansion of residential and commercial developments.
More information including manuals and applications for both the Town Monitor and State Political Coordinator roles are available from our website. If you have questions or are interested in applying, you may contact Town Monitor/SPC Task Force staff liaison Kevin Butler at
[email protected].