AUSTIN-02/02/2009  --Homeowners of Texas (HOT) endorses abolishing the TRCC (Texas Residential Construction Commission), an ineffective agency that is scheduled for mandatory sunset this year unless legislators vote to keep and fund it. But even though the Texas Sunset Commission staff recommended abolishing the agency, saying it’s "fundamentally flawed and does more harm than good," the Commissioners are drafting a bill to extend it. The question this Groundhog Day is, “Which way will our elected officials look in 2009?” Will they wake up to the light of the public who elected them, or crawl back in their hole after seeing the shadow of powerful builders who helped fund their campaigns, like they did in 2005 and 2007?

If legislators want to continue supporting the TRCC and refuse to regulate the homebuilding industry, we wonder whether they would consider extending the same courtesy to ALL Texas professions. The  Texas Business Relief and Economic Development Act of 2009 outlines what we might expect from such legislation. The Act, which extends policies that currently only apply to Texas homebuilders to other trades and professions as well, would (1) rescind licensing and remove barriers for entering once-restricted professions, (2) eliminate business risks by preventing lawsuits, and (3) return Texas to the “Wild West Land of the Free and Home of the Brave.”

ABOUT: Homeowners of Texas, Inc. (H.O.T.) is a non-profit corporation, formed in May 2008 and to make builders accountable to homeowners. This will be done by promoting the legislative and regulatory enactment of residential construction reform, including new laws and regulations designed to ensure that new construction and remodeling is properly engineered and built to protect homeowners from the devastating consequences of substandard construction. Consumers can find information about choosing a reliable home builder on the HOT website, www.homeownersoftexas.org.

CONTACT: For information or interviews contact Tom Archer at (512) 502-5349 or via e-mail at TomArcher@HomeownersOfTexas.org

PDF LINKS:

1.    Groundhog Day Media Alert is the text of this email.

2.    Groundhog Day Images includes eight light-hearted posters promoting the Texas Business Relief and Economic Development Act of 2009. (FUNNY)

3.    Texas Business Relief and Economic Development Act of 2009 outlines legislation to endorse homebuilder policies and apply them to other professions, rather than regulating builders.

4.    Legislative 1-Pager is our legislative 1-page flyer that summarizes the TRCC Sunset review, the recommendations of the Sunset Commission staff, and our Blueprint for TRCC Reforms.

5.    Used Home Versus New Home is a 1-page flyer describing licensing and comparing consumer protections of buying an Existing home with the lack of protections of buying a New home.

6.    Sunset Commission Decisions Annotated highlights our response to each of the Commission’s decisions re. TRCC.

7.    Abolish TRCC is a simple bill that we are introducing to abolish the agency.

8.    Texas Licensing Bill applies to general contractors, specialty contractors and building inspectors.

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