WASHINGTON — The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) launched an all-out effort to make housing a centerpiece of the massive economic stimulus package that lawmakers are expected to complete by mid-February. More than 80 builders from across the country converged on Capitol Hill on Jan. 7 to meet with the congressional leadership and key members of the banking and tax writing committees to convey the message that a housing stimulus is urgently needed and that restoring demand for housing is the fastest and most effective way of reviving the economy, according to the NAHB.
 
NAHB President and CEO Jerry Howard stressed that NAHB, as leader of the Fix Housing First coalition — which consists of more than 600 organizations, home building companies and manufacturers — was marching to Capitol Hill to show a united front.
 
“The message we are sending to Congress — there are no large builders, no small builders, no low-income builders, no suppliers and no manufacturers,” Howard said. “We’re all in this together and we are all focused on the stimulus package. We are talking to our members of Congress about a proposal crafted over the past several months that will fix both the supply and demand side of housing.”
 
Bolstering the visits to Capitol Hill, more than 17,000 telephone calls and e-mails in support of the Fix Housing First proposal were received by the Congress from members of NAHB and the coalition.

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