Tag: Jeffrey D. DeBoer

The Roundtable’s Jeffrey DeBoer Honored at the Annual Lamplighter Awards

Posted on by Abigail Grenadier

Roundtable President & CEO Jeffrey DeBoer was honored this week with the Lamplighter Award by the American Friends of Lubavitch (Chabad), along with Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives Mike Johnson, for their leadership and dedication to community and service.

Roundtable Leaders’ Comments

  • Coinciding with the 23rd anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks and approaching the first anniversary of the October 7 Hamas attacks in Israel, the evening began with a moment of silence, followed by a tribute from the United States Marine Corps Color Guard.
  • Immediate Past Roundtable Chair and event chair, John Fish (Chairman and CEO, Suffolk), introduced House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), who, alongside Rabbi Levi Shemtov, presented the Lamplighter Leadership Award to Speaker Johnson.
  • In his introductory remarks as the event chair and last year’s recipient of the Lamplighter Award, Fish stated, “On this important day, we are all reminded there is far more that unites us as Americans, than divides us.”
(L-R): Rabbi Levi Shemtov, John Fish, Jeffrey DeBoer, Norm Brownstein
  • After accepting his award, DeBoer commented,
  • “I am honored to support the American Friends of Lubavitch, particularly because of my deep respect and appreciation for the good deeds the Chabad does. But also because of my utter dismay and disgust by the rise of anti-Semitism in America and in many places around the world.

    Moreover, I am moved to provide assistance because of my deep distress over the violence that has been planted and allowed to grow on the campuses of our nation’s greatest universities. We must realize that speech is sometimes violent, but violence is never speech. One is allowed, up to a point. The other should never be allowed particularly on university campuses where young people are supposed to be learning.

    Together, we must continue to stand up against hate and bigotry in all its forms.” (Jeffrey DeBoer’s Speech)

Lamplighters

  • The American Friends of Lubavitch (Chabad) is part of the largest network of Jewish educational, cultural and humanitarian institutions in the world, with branches in all 50 states and over 100 countries on six continents.
  • The annual Lamplighter Awards honor exceptional communal, political, corporate and academic leaders.

Several hundred people attended the event, reception and dinner, including several Senators and House members; Gold Star families and members of the U.S. armed forces; and nearly two dozen ambassadors.

Senators Urge Regulators to Assess Risks to U.S. Financial System; Roundtable Leaders Voice Concerns

Posted on by Trey Jackson

Sen. Crapo at RER Meeting

Senate Banking Committee Chairman Sherrod Brown (D-OH), above, and 11 other committee members urged Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, who oversees the Financial Stability Oversight Council (FSOC), to identify risks and vulnerabilities brought to light during the recent banking crisis and provide regulatory, legislative, or other recommendations. (March 31 Letter and Politico Pro)

Regulatory Action

  • The committee letter called upon the Oversight Council’s members to conduct a thorough assessment that should include “traditional, quantifiable risks within prudential regulation, such as liquidity and interest rate risk management of less durable funding sources like non-core or uninsured deposits, and concentrations in asset classes like commercial real estate & long duration bonds.” (March 31 Letter) 
  • The Federal Reserve is conducting a separate review of federal banking oversight, with a report expected by May 1 that will recommend regulatory and supervisory actions. Fed Chair Jerome Powell has stated he will support the report’s regulatory recommendations. (Barr congressional testimony, March 30 and The Hill, March 28)
     
  • A recent House Financial Services Committee (HFSC) hearing—“The Federal Regulators’ Response to Recent Bank Failures”—featured testimony from Federal Reserve Vice Chair for Supervision Michael Barr, Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Chairman Martin Gruenberg and Treasury Undersecretary for Domestic Finance Nellie Liang.
     
  • HFSC Chairman Patrick McHenry (R-NC) on March 31 stated, “As we heard from [President] Biden’s own regulators at this week’s hearing, supervisory incompetence was the leading cause of the failures. There is no evidence that the original Dodd-Frank would have prevented these bank runs. Additionally, no recent stress test has considered the current economic conditions—most notably the Fed’s rapid rate increases to combat Democrat-induced inflation—that contributed to the fall of these institutions.”

Roundtable Leaders Respond

Walker Webcast April 5, 2023 with Jeff DeBoer

  • Capital concerns affecting commercial and multifamily markets were a focus this week of the Walker Webcast, which featured Roundtable President and CEO Jeffrey DeBoer and National Multifamily Housing Council President Sharon Wilson Géno. Roundtable Member Willy Walker (Chairman & CEO, Walker & Dunlop) led the wide-ranging discussion on April 5, which addressed the federal response to the bank failures, the debt ceiling, and affordable housing. 

  • DeBoer said, “I don’t think anybody assumed a 12-year period of basically zero interest rates, followed by a steep 500bps increase in financing costs, immediately following a once-every-hundred-years pandemic that shut everything down and changed a lot of the ways  . . . (in which) . . . the built environment would be used,” DeBoer said. “I think all of this has to be allowed to settle through.” (Walker Webcast video and Connect CRE, April 5)
     
  • Similar observations were offered this week by the head of the International Monetary Fund, who cautioned that a more volatile global economy would bring slower growth and greater financial fragility. “There is simply no way that interest rates would go up so much after being low for so long and there would be no vulnerabilities. Something is going to go boom,” IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said. (PoliticoPro, April 6)
     
  • DeBoer also noted The Roundtable’s recent letter urging federal regulators “to take action immediately to provide increased latitude for financing institutions to work constructively with borrowers. Such action will avert what we believe would be an unnecessary crisis.” (Roundtable Weekly, March 17)

Bill Rudin on Squawk Box April 2023

The challenges facing the industry due to recent interest rate hikes, bank failures, and continued widespread remote work will be a top focus of The Roundtable’s Spring Meeting on April 24-25 in Washington, DC (Roundtable-level members only). 

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The Roundtable’s Jeffrey DeBoer Recognized as One of DC’s “Top Lobbyists” for 2022

Posted on by Trey Jackson

Real Estate Roundtable President Jeffrey DeBoer & 2022 Roundtable Annual ReportReal Estate Roundtable President and CEO Jeffrey DeBoer, above, is one of the “Top Lobbyists” in Washington, DC for 2022, according to the prominent policy news publication, The Hill. This is the fifth consecutive year that DeBoer has earned the recognition. (The Hill, Dec. 7)

  • The publication noted their list of individual lobbyists is comprised of those who “played a key role in shaping an avalanche of legislation in 2022, including Democrats’ Inflation Reduction Act and several bipartisan bills that brought sharply divided lawmakers together.”
  • The Hill also notes the list recognizes “advocates won hard-fought battles to secure some of this year’s most significant bipartisan measures” and “demonstrated a track record of success in the halls of Congress and the administration during a critical year for policy.” (pdf of The Hill’s 2022 Top Lobbyists)
  • The Roundtable’s DeBoer commented, “I am honored to be recognized for my advocacy successes on behalf of the commercial real estate industry. However, I’m smart enough to know that they are not individual successes but are actually successes resulting from the hard work of the entire Roundtable team … our membership and staff. It is particularly rewarding to be honored by The Hill knowing that, in leading the team, my approach is grounded by a positive, bipartisan foundation built around overall community betterment and advancement.”

DeBoer added, “We will continue to advocate long-term, sustainable public policy relating to taxation, access to housing and capital, job creation and energy efficient buildings that are safe and secure—and I hope that our efforts will continue to be positively recognized.”

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Roundtable President and CEO Jeffrey DeBoer Recognized as One of the “Top Lobbyists” in Washington, DC

Posted on by Trey Jackson

Jeffrey DeBoer Real Estate Roundtable

Real Estate Roundtable President and CEO Jeffrey DeBoer, above, was recognized this month as one of the Top Lobbyists in Washington, DC by the influential policy news publication The Hill.

  • A variety of industry representatives were acknowledged in the annual list as “the people who wielded their clout and knowledge most effectively on behalf of their clients.”
  • The publication also noted, “The ranks of policy experts and influencers run deep in Washington, but these are the players who stand out for delivering results for their clients in the halls of Congress and the administration.”
  • The Roundtable’s DeBoer commented, “My inclusion on The Hill’s annual list reflects the effectiveness of our entire organization. I am proud to work with the industry’s best – its leaders represented on our board of directors, our national real estate organization partners and The Roundtable’s highly-effective advocacy staff,” DeBoer added.

The Roundtable’s next meeting on January 25-26 in Washington, DC will address its 2021 policy agenda during business and policy advisory committee meetings.

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Roundtable President and CEO Jeffrey DeBoer Recognized for Third Consecutive Year as One of the “Top Lobbyists” in Washington, DC

Posted on by Trey Jackson

Jeffrey DeBoer image crop 475w

The prominent policy news publication The Hill this week recognized Real Estate Roundtable President and CEO Jeffrey DeBoer as one of the Top Lobbyists in Washington, DC. This is the third consecutive year that DeBoer has been recognized in the annual list. (The Hill, Dec. 10)

  • The Hill’s 2020 recognition acknowledges a variety of industry representatives for their advocacy efforts as “the people who wielded their clout and knowledge most effectively on behalf of their clients.”
  • The publication also notes, “The ranks of policy experts and influencers run deep in Washington, but these are the players who stand out for delivering results for their clients in the halls of Congress and the administration.”
  • The Roundtable’s DeBoer commented, “It is an honor to be recognized individually, but my inclusion on the list is more reflective of the overall Roundtable organization, its membership and our staff team effort. I am proud to work with highly effective leaders from the commercial real estate industry and with a staff of advocacy professionals who communicate our balanced policy agenda positions to lawmakers and regulators with a fact-based, non-partisan approach.”
  • DeBoer added, “I appreciate the consistent recognition by The Hill but I share it side-by-side with our talented membership, staff and others who work on behalf of The Real Estate Roundtable.”

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Roundtable President and CEO Jeffrey DeBoer Recognized Among “The Hill’s Top Lobbyists 2019”

Posted on by Trey Jackson

JD-moon-475w

The Washington, DC policy news publication The Hill on Dec. 12 released its annual Top Lobbyists list, whioh includes The Real Estate Roundtable’s President and CEO, Jeffrey DeBoer.

  • The list recognizes several Washington industry representatives for their 2019 advocacy efforts and recognizes “the people who wielded their clout and knowledge most effectively on behalf of their clients,” according to the publication.
  • The Hill  list also notes, “The ranks of Washington’s policy experts and influencers run deep, but these are the players who stand out for delivering results for their clients in the halls of Congress and the administration.”
  • The Roundtable’s DeBoer commented, “I am proud to work for an organization of industry leaders and with a staff of effective advocacy professionals who are all committed to a fact-based, non-partisan approach to economic growth policies – an approach that benefits the country, its communities and commercial real estate markets.  This recognition by The Hill is appreciated and is a compliment to all those who work with The Real Estate Roundtable.”
  • DeBoer was also quoted Dec. 12 in Bisnow on “5 Policy Issues That Could Affect Commercial Real Estate In 2020.”
  • During a whirlwind policy month in DC that saw the passage of a $1.4 trillion spending deal with many positive policies affecting CRE – and the United-States-Mexico-Canada Agreement – DeBoer participated in a discussion that addressed the USMCA and other national issues.
  • On the USMCA, DeBoer noted, “If you’re in the real estate business, you want the underlying economy to be as healthy as possible, and the lack of an agreement here had been a drag on overall economic activity in the country.”  He added. “This agreement will both be a direct benefit in terms of the trading of materials that are used to construct assets, but also an indirect benefit because the underlying economy and businesses that trade goods will benefit from this.”
  • DeBoer also addressed the issue of affordable housing and GSE reform in the upcoming year.  He stated, “We want to see a positive debate where people talk about the real problems of housing availability in America, which has to do with the permitting process, the ability to develop dense properties, the ability to use the Section 8 and the Low Income Housing Tax Credit programs, and maybe those things should be expanded.” DeBoer also said, “”GSE reform is not going to solve the housing problems, but it’s going to be an aspect of housing reform in the country along with a variety of other things that need to be done.”

These policy issues and others that will comprise The Roundtable’s 2020 National Policy Agenda will be discussed during the organization’s State of the Industry Meeting on Jan. 28-29 in Washington, DC.

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