Jon Otto : Jon Otto is the Assistant Director for Government Affairs for the National Association of Mortgage Brokers.

Recent months have brought significant economic and market changes, resulting in a number of new legislative and regulatory requirements that will have an impact on our industry. With all of these changes, it can be difficult to keep up with the latest news and developments.

NAMB believes it is important to provide our members with the most up-to-date information on issues affecting your business and the mortgage industry as a whole. NAMB also strives to provide you with alternative resources through which even more detailed information may be found.
The purpose of this article is to review the various ways that NAMB communicates important information to its members in an effort to ensure that they have the most timely, comprehensive information available to help grow and protect their businesses.

In addition to this monthly column, NAMB’s Government Affairs Department provides members with the very latest news from Capitol Hill and information from around the industry through several major communication channels, including News from NAMB, NAMB Legislative Alerts, the Legislative Action Center on the NAMB Website, and NAMB Fights for You. Each of these outlets is critical to NAMB’s efforts to effectively and efficiently communicate with its members.

News from NAMB
News from NAMB (NFN) is a weekly bulletin provided to all NAMB members via e-mail, and includes up-dated information from each NAMB Department (Government Affairs, Certification, Commercial, Education, Meetings, and Membership).

The Government Affairs section of NFN contains synopses of recent industry news, and links for members to access additional resources (i.e., legislative language, regulations, mortgagee letters, press releases, etc.). NFN also announces scheduled events at NAMB conferences, scheduled Webinars with registration information, and new Web pages that have been added to the NAMB Website. NFN is an effective communication tool for members to acquire both industry and Association news and information on a weekly basis.

NAMB Legislative Alerts
NAMB Legislative Alerts are e-mail notifications sent directly to NAMB members, informing them of any new and important legislative or regulatory action in Washington, D.C. Legislative Alerts are issued when NAMB needs to immediately notify members of a Congressional or federal agency action that is likely to impact members’ businesses.

Recent Legislative Alerts have included notification on the “Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008,” the “Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008,” the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) conservatorship of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, and the Federal Re-serve Board’s Final Rule amending Regulation Z of the “Home Ownership Equity Protection Act.”

If you ever miss a Legislative Alert from NAMB, active and updated alerts are also available in the Legislative Action Center of the NAMB Website.

Legislative Action Center
The “Legislative Action Center” is an excellent tool on the NAMB Website, which provides members with continuously updated information on legislative and regulatory developments and issues on the federal level.

These updates are also archived in the Legislative Action Center for members should they need to access older information. The information included in the updates consists of a synopsis on the specific issue and useful links for further resources. NAMB strongly encourages members to utilize the Legislative Action Center for information on past and current issues affecting our industry.

The Legislative Action Center also provides useful tools beyond legislative and regulatory updates. Through the Legislative Action Center, members can:

• Search for their Representatives and Senators by zip code; • Find out how their Representative or Senator voted on a specific issue;

• Register to vote;

• Notify NAMB of advocacy meetings with Representatives, Senators, or staff;

• Provide feedback on advocacy efforts (especially important after NAMB’s Lobby Day and In District Lobbying Events);

• “Tell a Friend”—e-mail alerts to other interested parties; and

• Obtain contact information for their Representatives and Senators.

To access the Legislative Action Center directly, simply visit http:// capwiz.com/namb/home/.

NAMB Fights for You
Finally, NAMB Fights for You is another Government Affairs department form of communication, which seeks to periodically inform members via e-mail of NAMB’s ongoing efforts to represent, protect, and preserve members’ interests before Congress, in the media, and across the airwaves. One of the many benefits of NAMB membership is the representation you receive here in Washington, D.C., and NAMB believes it is important to provide you with an opportunity to see this representation in action.

NAMB has also created a NAMB Fights for You Webpage, where members can go to review NAMB’s recent advocacy efforts at their convenience. This page is continuously updated to reflect the activities undertaken by NAMB’s Government Affairs department and NAMB leadership.

NAMB consistently strives to keep members informed of the latest news and to provide them with useful resources as quickly and effectively as possible. Please continue to monitor your emails from NAMB, and visit our Website at http://www.namb.org.

If you have any suggestions for ways NAMB can better communicate information to its members, please contact us at governmentaffairs@ namb.org.

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Readers should not rely on it as such. No one should attempt to interpret or apply any law without the aid of an attorney.