Issues & AdvocacyIssues & Advocacy

WHY CONGRESS SHOULD LISTEN TO ARCHITECTS

The American Institute of Architects holds its annual convention in the nation’s capital this month, and it comes at a time when the convention’s theme – design connects – could really come in handy on Capitol Hill.

Unless you’re a recent visitor from another planet, you probably know that the mood of the federal legislature these days is polarized. What continues to confound is the extent to which proposals made to score political points (from both sides of the political aisle) can sometimes endanger the soundest of public policy initiatives and accomplishments, especially when it comes to energy efficient design and the health of the profession that specializes in it.

Two controversies currently raging on Capitol Hill come to mind.

The fight over the popular Stafford student loan program. Interest rates on loans made under the program are supposed to jump in July from 3.4 percent to 6.8 percent, and the scramble is on to find money to pay for keeping loan rates from spiking. Democrats have proposed raising payroll taxes on firms who file as Subchapter S Corporations, portraying such companies as rich folk trying to avoid paying their fair share. But the reality is that many S Corporations– in fact many AIA members – are small, main street businesses who are far from wealthy. They help create jobs and economic growth by reinvesting hard-earned capital back into their enterprises. Since many of our members work for firms with three or fewer employees, this proposal could force architects to lay off staff or stop hiring new staff to pay the new tax. The reality is that the IRS already can go after tax dodgers. The Senate Democratic proposal does not solve the problem, but forces honest small entrepreneurs to pay higher taxes. If we’re trying to make it easier for our college graduates to get started in their career and become contributing members of society, increasing taxes on those who would most likely hire them is simply bad public policy. While the AIA supports student loan relief, we’re taking an active stance against small business tax hikes as the solution.

The fight over cutting energy use in federal buildings. A fight, you ask incredulously? Why would anyone fight over such a seemingly laudable outcome? Again, the desire to score political points – this time by House Republicans – has obscured the goal of an otherwise noteworthy program – lowering energy consumption and carbon emissions in federal buildings. As MetropolisMag.com Executive Editor Martin Pedersen details in a fascinating May 3 blog entitled “Political Hardball,” http://www.metropolismag.com/pov/20120503/political-hardball, when the House Appropriations Committee late last month approved the 2013 Energy and Water appropriations bill, it included an amendment sponsored by Louisiana Republican Congressman Rodney Alexander, prohibiting the use of appropriated funds to implement Section 433 of the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007. According to the law, all new federal buildings and older buildings undergoing renovations of more than $2.5 million are required to substantially cut their use of fossil fuels. The provision sets rigorous, targeted goals that culminate in a 100% reduction by 2030. Some have said that the requirement is too strict; and yet architects are meeting the challenge today, designing buildings that use less energy, cost less to operate and are better for the environment. At a time when the country wants government to lower costs, it makes no sense for Congress to block efforts to cut energy bills in government buildings. Again, the American Institute of Architects will lobby hard against this short-sighted proposal.

It’s a fact of life that with the nation so severely in debt, and with federal budget deficits in the trillions, ill-advised proposals like these to cut spending and boost revenue might surface. However, the nation’s disorderly fiscal house cannot be straightened up by quick-fix solutions.

The architecture profession through the AIA will continue to play a major role on Capitol Hill in advocating for its members and the general public in helping guide the country toward sound economic and energy policies – policies that have the common good in mind, not political sound bites.

Joe Smith is President of AIA-Arizona