NAC Blog: What is NAHREP’s National Advocacy Committee (NAC) Agenda?
Celebrating NAHREP familia, cultura, politics, and grassroots action
What does the National Advocacy Committee stand for?
Over the past few weeks, I’ve been asked the question: What does the National Advocacy Committee (the NAC) stand for?
The answer is simple, the NAC exists in order to advocate for public policy that is directly tied to our mission, advancing sustainable Hispanic homeownership. At NAHREP, we understand that the housing policy decisions made today will not only influence our businesses, but will also dictate how Latinos fair in building wealth for their families.
NAHREP is not a political organization. We are a mission driven organization, first and foremost. We are neither Democrat nor Republican. We are laser focused on increasing homeownership opportunities for Latinos in America, and fighting for fair and equitable immigration policies. Period.
Every year we release the State of Hispanic Homeownership Report where we lay out our policy agenda for the year. The NAC focuses exclusively on the positions included in our report, because we believe they are the most critical to advancing our mission.
While the exact policies change from year to year, our policy priorities for the most part break down into three general buckets:
- Increasing the supply and production of homes.
It’s undeniable. There is a housing shortage in the U.S. The supply of housing is not keeping up with the demand for housing, a demand that is in large part being driven by Latino homebuyers. At NAHREP, we advocate for policies that will increase the production of homes, particularly those that are affordable for first-time buyers. - Access to Credit.
A key component of achieving homeownership for the Latino community is access to affordable financing, or mortgages. At NAHREP, we advocate for policies that ensure that more Latinos can both qualify for a loan and be able to afford payments sustainably. NAHREP supports policies that ensure that mortgage lending practices reflect the particular needs of the growing Latino community.
- Immigration.
At NAHREP, we advocate for comprehensive immigration reform, an issue that our members are passionate about. NAHREP has a unique voice in the immigration debate because we highlight the contributions immigrants make to the U.S. economy, especially in the housing industry. For example, a driving cost of building homes is the labor shortage the U.S. is currently experiencing. We need more immigration, not less, in order to grow our economy.
To be clear, NAHREP is an economic mobility organization. We believe in building wealth for Latinos through homeownership. However, in order to make our voices heard and strengthen our influence on these policy issues, we must do the following:
- We must vote. In order for Latinos to strengthen our power in the U.S., our population growth must translate into electoral power. There are currently at least 15 million Latinos who are eligible to vote but are not registered. That is why this year, the NAC will be promoting a #NAHREPVOTES campaign to ensure that everyone in our community who can vote, votes.
Are you registered to vote? Don’t wait, register now at www.vote.gov. It only takes a few minutes. Too much is at stake for our community to sit elections out. - We must become educated on the policy issues that impact our mission. Housing policy impacts our businesses, our families and our ability to build wealth. It’s that important. That is why we are making sure that every chapter has a Government Affairs Directors, so that each chapter can be educated on policies that impact our mission and bring that value to their members.
- We must speak up. We must hold our elected officials accountable and make our voices heard. We do this both by visiting the offices of our elected officials to advance our mission and by calling our representatives when critical votes are being debated. NAHREP will call on you, our NAC members, to call your representative when important housing or immigration policy issues are on the line.
In today’s world, it’s hard to separate policy from politics. However, we need to factor in becoming politically savvy into our business plans, because it matters. Nosotros somos NAHREP, not aligned with a particular party but squarely focused on our housing agenda. We are the Latino party, and we WILL show this nation that #NAHREPVOTES. Adelante!
About Noerena Limón
Noerena Limón is NAHREP’s Executive Vice President of Public Policy and Industry Relations. Noerena heads the organization’s policy and advocacy efforts on issues ranging from homeownership, housing inventory, credit access and immigration.
Prior to joining NAHREP, Noerena spent six years at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and served as a political appointee under President Obama in the White House Office of Political Affairs.