Oregon: NAMIC Joins Citizens Against Unsafe Housing to Oppose Ballot Measure 63

In Oregon’s general election Nov. 4, voters will have the opportunity to vote “no” on Ballot Measure 63, Exempts Specified Property Owners from Building Permit Requirements for Improvements Valued at/under $35,000.

Earlier this month, NAMIC joined a broad-based business coalition, Citizens Against Unsafe Housing, to help educate consumers about the public safety implications of Ballot Measure 63. The coalition is made up of realtors, labor organizations, the small-business community, contractors, and the insurance industry.

Ballot Measure 63 was introduced on April 18 by Bill Sizemore, the self-styled consumer advocate who sponsored the 2006 Oregon Credit Scoring Ban Ballot Measure, which voters soundly rejected after being educated about how it would drive up insurance rates for consumers. NAMIC was a funding member of the business and insurance industry coalition that opposed that ballot measure.

Ballot Measure 63 exempts non-electrical home repair, remodeling, and/or improvement projects that have a cost of up to $35,000 annually from the state requirement that the work be permitted and inspected.

NAMIC is actively opposing this anti-consumer safety ballot measure because:

Ballot Measure 63 will encourage shoddy home construction work, which could expose policyholders to personal harm and greater property damage loss exposure;
The measure could increase a policyholder’s third-party insurance liability exposure and the policyholder’s personal out-of-pocket third-party liability exposure;
The measure will create serious underwriting problems for carriers who currently base their insurance rates upon the reasonable assumption that home repairs and renovations are being done in a building code compliant manner; and
The proposed measure could cause homeowner’s insurance rates to increase in Oregon, which currently has the second lowest homeowner’s insurance rates in the nation, according to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners.

NAMIC, in conjunction with other members of the insurance industry, will be contributing to the creation of consumer information pamphlets designed to educate voters about the adverse public safety and consumer protection consequence of the ballot measure.

Direct questions to NAMIC State Affairs Manager Christian J. Rataj.

Posted: Tuesday, August 26, 2008 12:00:00 AM. Modified: Tuesday, August 26, 2008 2:15:58 PM.

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