Pillow Talk – I Am Too 

Excuses, everyone makes them.  I am too:  busy, tired, old, young, opinionated, ignorant, scared, bold, uneducated, smart, poor, rich, shy, outrageous, liberal, conservative, religious, agnostic, fast, slow, etc. 

But, for FWAA members, personal advocacy is an excuse free zone.  Last month, we explored our third Advocacy Attribute:  transforming personal convictions into corporate causes or turning Me into We. This month, we examine the attributes that come from overcoming objections.

How often have you heard:  “I’m just a ___________(fill in the blank) onsite manager, maintenance professional, leasing consultant, supplier, etc., so my personal involvement in FWAA advocacy does not make a difference”? Or have you ever thought “I do not live in that elected official’s district, so my opinion does not matter”?  How about this one “Politicians only pay attention to people that give them money”!

All the above excuses prevent FWAA members from actively participating in the political process.  So, what is your excuse?  Whatever your reason, you can overcome it by 1) recognizing it as a self-imposed limitation; 2) understanding the impact of personal involvement; and, most importantly, 3) acknowledging your self-worth and value to yourself, your company, and the multifamily industry.  

Conquering your excuses gives you self-confidence, a vital advocacy attribute.  Self confidence is not easily obtained, but when you live in a no-excuse zone, your I am Too becomes I Too:  met with an elected official, block-walked for a political candidate, contributed to FWAA PAC, ran for public office, etc.

May 4^th  MUNICIPAL ELECTIONS RESULTS – More than fifty candidates filed to run in the May 4^th elections for city council or mayor in the ten largest cities in FWAA’s service-area. FWAA did not endorse nor financially support any candidates in these elections; however, a couple of results to note include: 

• Jack McCarty (64%) won the open North Richland Hills mayoral election. Hugh Cobb, Kevin Pellegrino, and Perry Pillow met with McCarty prior to the election.

• Incumbent Dan Cogan (60%) won re-election as Bedford mayor. Cogan defeated former mayor Jim Griffin who was mayor when FWAA sued Bedford.

• Mauricio Galante (52%) won the open Arlington District 1 council seat. This district includes north Arlington and the entertainment district. Incumbent Helen Moise a long-time FWAA friend was term-limited and unable to run for re-election.

• Incumbent Arlington city council members Raul Gonzalez, Long Pham, and Bowie Hogg all won re-election. Gonzalez and Pham were unopposed, and Hogg won by a wide margin.

• Fort Worth residents overwhelmingly (71%) approved Proposition A which increases the hotel tax (including short-term rentals)  by 2%.  These funds will be used to pay for the estimated $700 million expansion of the Fort Worth Convention Center.

• Fort Worth mayor and council elections are in 2025.

FWAA looks forward to working with the new mayors and city council members.    

MAY 28^TH PRIMARY RUN-OFF ELECTIONS -  . FWAA, TAA, & NAA PAC supported Republican candidates St. Rep. Stephanie Klick (HD 91), St. Rep. Dewayne Burns (HD 58), and Craig Goldman (CD -12) are in tough run-off contests.  On March 19^th, FWAA’s PAC trustees approved an additional $2,500 contribution to Republican state representative Stephanie Klick (HD 91) and an additional $5,000 NAA PAC contribution for Craig Goldman  for their run-off campaigns election. The other significant Republican run-off is the open state representative district 97 race to replace Craig Goldman between Cheryl Bean and John McQueeney.  The Tarrant County Commissioner – Precinct 1 Democrat primary is going to a run-off between former Fort Worth City Council Mayor Pro Tem Kathleen Hicks and Rodrick Miles.  

FORT WORTH ENACTS VETERANS SOI PROTECTIONS – In March, the Fort Worth City Council passed an ordinance prohibiting discrimination against military veterans based on the veteran’s source of income (SOI). FWAA strongly supports military veterans and their families. FWAA members have an exemplary record of housing veterans including housing more than 160 homeless veterans in less than 60 days in 2021. For many military veterans, housing assistance is issued through the Veteran Affairs Supportive Housing (VASH) program.  FWAA along with TAA and AAGD, HAA, SAAA, & AAA worked tirelessly to enact a statewide preemption for SOI (i.e. mandatory Section 8) protection. The state statute has an exception for cities to enact SOI for veterans. FWAA is developing an online seminar to help our members successfully adhere to this new requirement.

CONTRIBUTE TO THE FWAA PAC – FWAA advocacy efforts depend on all our members doing their part to financially support candidates that align with FWAA’s interest.  Please contribute to the FWAA PAC by clicking on the following link:  https://form.jotform.com/220464310148143 

Perry Pillow is FWAA's Director of Government Affairs. For more information, contact Perry at  ppillow@aatcnet.org  or call 817-701-6353.