New BOMA International Policies

At BOMA International's North American Commercial Real Estate Congress held June 23-28 in Anaheim, California, BOMA's advocacy-related committees met and recommended new policy positions; among them green buildings and sustainability and banks in real estate. These policies were then unanimously approved by the Board of Governors on June 26.

BOMA International is proud to take a leadership role in promoting green buildings and technologies. BOMA's new policy states that BOMA must lead the real estate industry in educating our membership on green buildings and the various programs available for achieving an environmentally responsible building; in providing all information available to our members so they can make decisions that best reflect their needs and the marketplace within which they operate; in monitoring and advocating in the legislative, regulatory and codes arena for the ability of BOMA members to continue to make the choices that work best for their buildings and tenants; and in promoting environmental stewardship and recognizing excellence.

BOMA International's new policy position on banks in real estate supports legislation that has been introduced in both the House and the Senate (H.R. 111 and S. 98) to amend the Bank Holding Company Act of 1956 and the Revised Statutes of the United States to prohibit the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and the Secretary of the Treasury, respectively, from determining that real estate brokerage activity or real estate management activity is financial in nature, is incidental to any financial activity, or is complementary to a financial activity. In effect, it prohibits financial holding companies and national banks from engaging, directly or indirectly, in real estate brokerage or real estate management activities. The legislation also clarifies the financial institutions would continue to be permitted to dispose of real property acquired in foreclosure and to continue fiduciary and trust activities involving real estate, as well as to allow banks to manage property they use or occupy.