President’s message Happy holidays and a most heartfelt thank you to everyone who made serving as your 2021 BIAW President the honor of a lifetime. My most humble thanks go out to each one of our members. As I look at 2021 in the rearview mirror, I couldn’t be prouder of the success we’ve achieved. And when I say “we,” I mean all of us in the BIAW family, from your senior officers to our local associations to our individual builder, associate and remodeler members and to all the staff who support us. Coming into 2021, I shared my vision for the year. As we continued to struggle with the effects of COVID in our schools, businesses and communities, it was hard to predict what might lie ahead. With that in mind, I focused on three main goals: Protect, Promote and Prepare.
Tracy Doriot, BIAW Certified Builder President
Protecting the homebuilding industry and our workers Despite the challenges of a virtual legislative session and videoconference court hearings, BIAW continued its efforts to protect and promote our industry at all levels of government and in the courts. Week after week, you answered the call to submit virtual testimony and to weigh in on bills. We shifted our hill day strategy and held over 75 online meetings during our “Connecting Construction to the Capitol” virtual lobbying effort. Thanks to your work we killed a number of bad bills!
(l-r) Sen. Ann Rivers (R-La Center), BIACC member Aaron Marvin, BIAW Government Affairs Assistant Director Josie Cummings, BIACC member Dave Myllymaki, BIAW President Tracy Doriot and former BIACC Government Affairs coordinator Ryan Makinster participate in BIAW's virtual Hill Day.
We also filed multiple lawsuits to protect our rights and our businesses—and they continue to make their way through the courts. When our lawmakers become lawbreakers and infringe on the American Dream, it’s great to know we can “Release the Kraken” to help hold government accountable. And finally, ROII, our safety incentive program, produced the largest refund in history for its participants: over $27 million—proving that protecting our workers from workplace injuries truly does pay off. 4
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