Welcome to the IFMA Government Relations Action Center. As you may be aware, IFMA is maintaining an aggressive issue monitoring and advocacy program in Washington, D.C. as part of our continued efforts to magnify the importance of the facility management professional. The association’s advocacy efforts on Capitol Hill are dedicated to providing reliable information to decision makers on issues affecting the built environment, creating common sense solutions for energy efficient building initiatives and highlighting the importance of education and training in effective facility management.
IFMA has tremendous advocates in Washington, including staff and regular visits by the Board of Directors. However, the greatest resource IFMA can bring to bear is the experience and expertise of our nearly 20,000 members worldwide. As IFMA continues to expand our advocacy efforts, we strongly encourage our members to become involved. Decisions made on Capitol Hill are increasingly influencing the FM profession, and it is critical that lawmakers get the information directly from those who will be affected by legislation. Please take some time to understand the issues IFMA is currently monitoring in Washington and reach out to help educate your elected officials.
IFMA is committed to working with public and private sector partners to provide reliable information to our nation’s leaders on issues affecting the built environment and investing in our nation’s infrastructure by updating our country’s existing building stock. For more information on IFMA’s government affairs program, or to find out how you can become more involved in helping to shape the policy debate in Washington, please e-mail jeffrey.johnson@ifma.org.
Monthly Legislative Update
IFMA Sustainability Committee Hosts January Meeting of the High Performance Building Congressional Caucus Coalition
February 2010
 On Jan. 28, Eric Teicholz and Chris Hodges conducted a briefing on behalf of the IFMA Sustainability Committee for the High Performance Building Congressional Caucus Coalition (HPBCCC). The briefing, held in room 340 of the Rayburn House Office Building, was well attended by congressional staff, coalition partners and members of the IFMA Capital Chapter. The goal of the briefing was to provide an overview of the ISC’s current efforts and the tactical and strategic approaches to sustainability in the built environment. Additionally, Chris and Eric were able to provide easily understandable examples of the effects of incorporating sustainable practices and the impact those practices can have on both workplace productivity and a company’s bottom line.
IFMA sits on the Executive Committee of the HPBCCC and has been working with our coalition partners for the past two years to provide information and perspective to Congress and the Obama administration. The caucus was formed to heighten awareness and inform policymakers about the major impact buildings have on our health, safety and welfare and the opportunities to design, construct and operate high-performance buildings that reflect our concern for these impacts.
As part of these efforts, the caucus has made a series of policy recommendations and is currently working with several congressional offices to enact legislation that will improve building performance in both the public and private sector. The caucus host’s monthly briefings for congressional staffers and continually seeks to raise the profile of these issues.
For more information on the HPBCCC or to find out how you can attend an upcoming briefing, please visit the caucus Web site at www.hpbccc.org or contact Jeff Johnson, IFMA’s director of government affairs, at Jeffrey.Johnson@ifma.org.
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