Title insurance professionals who have been hoping for changes to the disclosure of simultaneously issued title insurance were left disappointed when the TRID Improvement Act of 2018 was not included in the final Senate financial regulatory reform bill sponsored by Sen. Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), which was passed last month.
However, the fight to get the TRID Improvement Act to the president’s desk is not yet over.
House Financial Services Committee Chairman Jeb Hensarling (R-Texas) has made public his desire to include bipartisan, non-controversial bills passed by the House within the Senate bill before the package is passed from Congress to the president’s desk for final signature.
Among the bills which Hensarling is pushing for inclusion is the TRID Improvement Act.
“Those bills that get bipartisan support [in the House], we expect to be in the final package. I don’t know any other way to put it,” Hensarling said in one recent interview.
What does that mean for you? What can you do to help the TRID bill be included?
“If you want to see the TRID Improvement Act pass, and you know the number of your congressman or senator, you should call them,” American Land Title Association (ALTA) Vice President of Government and Regulatory Affairs Justin Ailes told RESPA News. “You should call their staff and tell them that a bill that’s bipartisan, that passed the House unanimously, has every right to be considered in the regulatory relief bill passed by the Senate.
“There’s no reason why the TRID Improvement Act shouldn’t be a part of the Crapo relief bill.”
Much of the public narrative following passage of the Senate bill was that the support of Democrats in the Senate on regulatory relief was tenuous, with banking and financial industry supporters arguing that risking the bill’s passage by adding House amendments would cost all the gains currently in the Senate bill.
“If I were a lobbyist for those groups, I would say the same thing,” Ailes said. “If I got my thing passed by the Senate, I’d tell everyone, ‘Don’t change it!’ But there’s a lot that’s not in that Senate bill.
“If you think consumers should be confused, then don’t make changes. If you want accurate information for consumers, this is very reasonable.”
Ailes and ALTA’s advocacy staff in Washington have been garnering support for the bill, which requires the actual cost of title insurance to be disclosed on mortgage forms, in contrast to TRID’s current provisions concerning the simultaneous issue of title insurance.
Among the major champions of the bill is its primary sponsor, Rep. French Hill (R-Ark.), who said recently, “This bill offers clarity and takes a complex rule and makes this part of it simple, where the consumer will see what the cost of the title insurance is.”
But Ailes said lobbyists and congressmen are only part of the process of influencing legislation. Small-business owners and title insurance agents can have even more influence.
“If you know your House member, or think they’d know who you are because you’ve met them or they drive past your office when they’re home … if you want to show your Realtor and bank customers that you are fighting for them, you will be amazed at how much progress you could make just by picking up the phone and calling,” Ailes said. “You can get so much more done.”
An example of that happened at a recent fundraiser for Hill, when Pulaski County Title owner Billy Roehrenbeck met with his congressman.
“We know each other, so it was a warm reception, and I said thanks for all you’re doing. We talked about the Senate bill, and some of the details that were missing from that, and are included with Hill’s bill,” Roehrenbeck said.
As Hill went to talk with other guests, Roehrenbeck said he wanted to ask a question about that to Hill during the event, so the entire crowd of title, bankers and Realtors would be aware of the situation. He texted Ailes to ask about specifics on the bill’s progress.
“Justin gave me the opportunity to throw that question out and allow (Hill) to explain it to the audience and to go into details about what he’s working on and the importance of it,” Roehrenbeck said. “His efforts on our behalf are impressive. But I couldn’t have asked that educated of a question without Justin’s input.”
Roehrenbeck said the process showed the reach that one person, or a small group of people, can have into decisions made at the federal level.
“You wouldn’t think there would be that much impact, but all of us in the industry, we have the ability to affect change,” he said. “When we make efforts like that, it has a direct and immediate impact.”
For those who would rather be part of a larger campaign, ALTA’s Title Action Network (TAN) is free and open to non-members and ALTA members alike. This year alone, TAN members have sent more than 2,300 messages to legislators in support of the TRID bill.
“If you’re not a member of TAN, it’s a good way to be reminded to take action when it’s timely,” Ailes said. “A part of TAN right now is calling congressional liaisons – people with a personal relationship with a member of Congress, or those who want to have a relationship with a member. Those people are really moving the needle right now.”
And with Congress set to return to Washington after two weeks of recess, Ailes said the battle for the bill is ongoing.
“It ain’t over til it’s over,” he said. “This is our best shot to get the TRID Improvement Act passed this year, so we’re making every effort we can to get it included in the Senate bill.
“The closer we get to November, the less likely it passes. After the November elections, it’s probably pretty tough to get the same number of Democratic votes in the Senate.”