10-1-18
Bill Ward, Executive Vice President
You don’t have to be an Executive Officer or even on the Board of Directors to get involved with new and ongoing projects at HBAI. We are addressing three issues using Task Forces to focus on things that matter most to our members.
The HomePAC Task Force had its first conference call in September to discuss how we can engage our members to become more active in HomePAC fundraising. HBAI President Patrick Franz has made it his goal as President to make members more aware of where we stand on PAC contributions and to bring our contributions up to a respectable level. Currently, we raise $25 to $30,000 in PAC funds per year, placing us behind more than 400 other PAC funds in total revenues. Franz hopes to raise HomePAC to a $250,000 level which would place us in the top 50 PACS in Illinois. The Task Force is taking any, and all ideas seriously on how to raise more funds for PAC.
HBAI 1st Vice President, Rosie Millen, has initiated a Task Force on Healthcare Insurance for our members and their employees. One of the most asked questions we get when meeting with our local associations is, “how do we get a health insurance program we can sell to our members as a benefit offered by our association?” Our members struggle with providing affordable healthcare for themselves, their families, and their employees. Millen is meeting with different entities in the insurance industry in hopes of bringing to our board an insurance proposal that will be useful and affordable.
HBAI Secretary, Bryan Wenthe is chairing a Task Force on Contractor Licensure. Initiated at our September Board Meeting, we will bring forward to our members the benefits and pitfalls of licensure and poll the local associations for guidance on this issue that has been discussed in HBAI Board Meetings since the first meeting in 1956! Right now, only 13 states, including Illinois, have no licensure for residential builders and remodelers. HBAI reviewed the issue last in 2014 and concluded that while there was a majority of members who favored some sort of state regulation, but enough to warrant going forward with our own legislation.
If any of these issues pique your interest, I urge you to get involved by writing to me at billward@hbai.org, and asking to get on a task force for one or more of these issues. We greatly need your input.
Wenthe Meets with Downstate House Republicans
HBAI Secretary Bryan Wenthe (third from the left) is flanked from all sides by Republican Candidates for the Illinois House of Representatives. Bryan delivered a HomePAC contribution to House Republican Candidate, Darren Bailey (center) at his Evening at The Farm fundraiser held on Sunday, September 30th in Xenia, Illinois. Bailey is a non-incumbent running in the 109th District, a large farming district located in southeastern Illinois. He is one of several first-time candidates being supported by HBAI and HomePAC.
Left to right: Rep. Tim Butler (87th-Springfield), Candidate Blaine Wilhour (107th – Effingham County), Bryan Wenthe, Darren Bailey, Rep. C.D. Davidsmeyer (100th – Morgan County), Candidate Chris Miller (110th – Coles County), and House Republican Leader, Jim Durkin (82nd – Western Springs).
