09 Feb Legislative Update – February 9, 2018
On Thursday, February 1st, the Mississippi REALTORS® hosted its annual REALTOR® Day at the Capitol, and the day was a tremendous success. We had more than 300 REALTORS® register to attend our Day at the Capitol and visit with their Legislators. Mississippi REALTORS® were visited by Governor Phil Bryant, Lieutenant Governor Tate Reeves, Speaker Philip Gunn, Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann, and several members of the Mississippi Legislature. During the REALTOR® Day at the Capitol, Senator Joey Fillingane and Representative Jeff Smith were recognized as the 2017 Legislators of the Year for their extraordinary work to pass the Mississippi First-Time Homebuyer Savings Account Act.
Thursday, February 8, 2018 marked the deadline for floor action on bills originating in their own house. This means that House Bills must have passed out of the House of Representatives, and Senate Bills must have passed out of the Senate for the bills to remain alive. When the 2018 Legislative Session began on January 2nd, thousands of bills were filed. As of February 8th, most of those bills either died in committee or died on the calendar (they passed out of committee but were not taken up for consideration on the floor).
During the Mississippi REALTOR® 2018 Winter Meetings, the Senate unanimously passed the Mississippi REALTORS® #1 Legislative Priority, SB 2041 (Broker Responsibility Act).
Late last week, you should have received a statewide Call for Action to contact your Representative and urge them to vote YES on HB 1476 (Broker Responsibility Act). Because of your quick response, 104 Representatives were contacted and encouraged to support HB 1476–and your voice was heard! HB 1476 passed the House 81-34 and has been transmitted to the Senate for consideration. A companion bill with the same language, SB 2041, passed the Senate 52-0. Thank you for responding to the Call for Action and serving as a property professional and community champion.
At this date in the 2018 Legislative Session, the Mississippi REALTORS® have been successful in advancing its legislative priorities, and all bills have either passed out of their originating body or a bill exists to amend with Mississippi REALTORS® supported language.
Here is a report on the 2018 Mississippi REALTORS® Legislative Priorities:
- Real Estate License Law (Broker Responsibility Act)–For most Mississippians, the home is the largest asset they will possess in their lifetime. The Mississippi REALTORS® are dedicated to instilling consumer confidence and reassurance throughout any real estate transaction by promoting education and responsible management among real estate brokers. In any real estate transaction, the responsibility to monitor and manage the transaction resides with the real estate broker. After careful evaluation of Mississippi’s real estate license law, discussions with the Mississippi Real Estate Commission, and examination of real estate broker license laws in other states, the Mississippi REALTORS® support amending the real estate broker license law to enhance broker education and experience requirements to provide additional consumer protection.
HB 1476 (Sponsor- Rep. Jason White) (Co-Sponsors- Rep. Tracy Arnold, Rep Nick Bain, Rep. Scott Delano, Rep. Deborah Dixon, Rep. Kevin Horan, Rep. Steve Massengill, Rep. Donnie Bell, and Rep. Shane Barnett)
STATUS: Passed the House of Representatives on February 6th by a vote of 81-34 (See how your Representative voted HERE). HB 1476 has been transmitted to the Senate and is awaiting a committee referral.
SB 2041 (Sponsor- Senator Sally Doty) (Co-Sponsors- Senator Walter Michel, Senator Bob Dearing, Senator Robert Jackson)
STATUS: Passed the Senate, UNANIMOUSLY (52-0), on February 1st). SB 2041 has been transmitted to the House of Representatives and is awaiting a committee referral.
- Landlord-Tenant Law–To protect the rights of property owners, the Mississippi REALTORS® support legislation designed to enhance the rights of property owners, clarify the eviction process for delinquent tenants, and create a more consistent process for the Justice Court Judge System. In addition to amending the current Landlord-Tenant law, the Mississippi REALTORS® have submitted a resolution to the Supreme Court of Mississippi, the Mississippi Judicial College, and the Mississippi Judicial Advisory Study Committee stating the challenges within the Justice Court Judge system.
HB 548 (Sponsor- Rep. Chris Johnson) (Co-Sponsor- Rep. Cory Wilson)
STATUS: Died in Judiciary A Committee
SB 2657 (Sponsor- Senator Sally Doty) (Co-Sponsors- Senator Walter Michel, Senator Joel Carter, Senator Kevin Blackwell, Senator Chris Massey)
STATUS: Died in Judiciary A Committee
Although the bills introduced by the Mississippi REALTORS® died in committee, another bill, SB 2473 passed out of the Senate on February 7th. This bill is designed to enhance the rights of private property owners and clarify the eviction process. During the committee process, a reverse repealer was placed in the bill. A reverse repealer is a technical maneuver that kills a bill before it’s official effective date. In order for the bill to become law, the reverse repealer must be removed by the other house and the changes accepted by the originating body.
SB 2473 does not contain all of the proposals supported by the Mississippi REALTORS®.
THIS IS NOT THE LEGISLATION PROPOSED BY THE MISSISSIPPI REALTORS®; HOWEVER, THE MISSISSIPPI REALTORS® WILL CONTINUE TO MONITOR AND EVALUATE THE BILL.
- Appraiser Law–Since the passage of the Dodd Frank Act, numerous regulations and requirements were placed on appraisers. While some of the changes help to address many of the concerns that contributed to the housing market crash, other regulations have placed unnecessary burdens on appraisers. As a result of the overregulation, Mississippi is seeing a decline in the number of licensed appraisers and is currently experiencing a shortage of appraisers. The Mississippi REALTORS® support policies designed to address the overregulation of the appraiser industry.
HB 1305 (Sponsor- Rep. Donnie Bell) (Co-Sponsor- Rep. Shane Barnett)
STATUS: Passed the House of Representatives on February 1st by a vote of 116-2 (See how your Representative voted HERE). HB 1305 has been transmitted to the Senate and is awaiting a committee referral.
SB 2575 (Sponsor- Senator Rita Parks)
STATUS: Died on the Senate Calendar
After today’s deadline, bills passed by their originating house will be transmitted to the other body, where they will be referred to the appropriate committee(s).
Here’s How You Can Help:
- Contact your Senator and THANK THEM for their support of SB 2041 (Broker Responsibility Act)–MS REALTORS® #1 Priority.
- Contact your Senator and ask them to Vote YES on HB 1476 (Broker Responsibility Act).
- Check out the vote for HB 1476–Did your Representative support MS REALTORS® #1 Priority? If so, contact them to say “Thank You for supporting REALTORS® Legislative Priorities.”
Do you have questions about a specific bill or policy? Don’t hesitate to contact Mississippi REALTORS® Vice President of Government Relations, Clarke Wise, by email (cwise@msrealtors.org) or phone (601) 932-5241.
Here are some additional resources you may find helpful: