National News
November 23 marked a pivotal moment for tax reform as the House passed H.R. 1, The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. The final vote was 227-205 with 2 members not voting. Congressman Turner and Congressman Davidson supported the bill.
Prior to the vote, OAR President Pete Kopf and OAR Treasurer AJ Frye went to Washington, D.C. to speak with Senator Portman and Congressman Turner about the potential negative impact the bill could have have home values around the nation. Now the bill heads to the Senate for hearings on its own version of the bill. A comparison chart detailing the differences in the House and Senate versions can be found here.
Following the House vote, NAR President Elizabeth Mendenhall released a statement.
NAR’s Call for Action will continue throughout Senate deliberations. Currently, Dayton Realtors® response rate is at 14.7% with Ohio Realtors® sitting at 21%. It’s imperative that your voice is being heard. If you haven’t already, you can take action by clicking here.
Tax reform faces a tougher road in the Senate. Senator Ron Johnson (R-WI) has already voiced his opposition to the Senate’s Tax reform package, and with Republicans holding a 52-48 seat advantage, Senate Leadership can only afford two more senators to vote “no” before the Senate bill is sunk, assuming all Democratic senators remain opposed to the bill.
Outside of tax reform, the 21st Century Flood Reform Act cleared a key hurdle this week as it passed the House floor by a vote of 237-189 with Congressman Davidson and Congressman Turner voting in favor of the legislation.
Local News
Locally, election day came and went with 11 DARPAC-supported candidates victorious! They are as follows: John Morris in Miami Township, Scott Paulson in Washington Township, Jeff Gore for Huber Heights Mayor with Mark Campbell, Nancy Byrge, and Seth Morgan elected to city council. DARPAC scored big victories in Dayton as Joey Williams and Jeffrey Mims were re-elected to city commission and Mohamed Al-Hamdani, William Harris Jr, Karen Wick-Gagnet, and Jocelyn Rhynard won seats on the Dayton Public School Board.