Business and the Election: Change is in the air
ItÂ’s already been established that when president-elect Sen. Barack Obama transitions into the White House, heÂ’ll be faced with some monumental issues for the nation.
From the economy and real estate to energy and health care, local business leaders are taking in the news of the election and assessing what it will mean for their industries.
Most agree that although change may be coming, the industries are large, intricate and established and no radical changes can take effect immediately.
While local real estate professionals don’t all agree with the outcome of Tuesday’s presidential election, there is one thing they are all sure of – any election’s conclusion only helps bolster consumer and investor confidence.
“In the local real estate market, who won is not going to make as big of a difference as the fact that it’s settled,” said Mark Wood, co-owner of real estate firm Howe/Wood & Co. “The decision is made and we hope to see the real estate market have more confidence. That means those investors who have been waiting on the side-lines might see a more steady market.”
Jim Gaines, research economist at the Texas A&M Real Estate Center, said the first sign of a policy change that will greatly affect the real estate market will be when Obama looks to spend a portion of the recently passed $700 billion economic bail-out package.
“At this point no one knows what we’re doing,” Gaines said. “We still don’t know how [Obama’s] going to spend the bail-out package. We do know that he can’t spend all of it without going back to Congress for approval so he doesn’t have that much latitude. And we know in general there’s going to be more government and more regulation, but many thought that would be the case irrespective of who won. I guess we have a direction, we know for certain what type of approach the government will take, we just don’t know what specific policies will be coming.”
There are not yet specifics for an Obama energy plan either, but some energy industry representatives are cautiously optimistic ObamaÂ’s forthcoming administration could usher in sweeping new changes that would introduce more emphasis on renewable energy resources. However, other industry leaders argue the Illinois senatorÂ’s policies will lead to legislation that will hamper oil and gas development.
In a post-election column, the Texas Alliance of Energy Producers President Alex Mills said “the oil and gas industry can expect more punitive legislation and regulation coming from Washington.”
Mills said Obama’s platform of supporting the windfall profits tax, which would place higher taxes on unforeseen gains the oil industry might reap, and further protection of the environment would be “a deterrent to increasing production of domestic crude and natural gas.” Obama has said he would “enact a windfall profits tax on excessive oil company profits to give American families an immediate $1,000 emergency energy rebate to help families pay rising bills.” This is in response to record multibillion-dollar profits ExxonMobil Corp. and Chevron Corp. recently posted and high oil and gas prices.
A former adviser to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, John Berger spoke highly of an Obama administration with regard to renewable energy initiatives.
“We needed a change in the energy industry and I hope and pray that that’s exactly what we’re going to get – there’s a change coming in the energy industry that’s going to make this country a lot better off. The numbers are certainly there to make it possible,” said Berger, currently chairman and CEO of Houston-based Standard Renewable Energy, a provider of energy efficiency and renewable energy solutions.
The number may not currently be there to tackle another issue, though. Obama has proposed creating a National Health Insurance Exchange, which would create health care options for people who are uninsured or want new health insurance. Any American will be able to enroll in the new public plan or an approved private plan, and there will be income-based sliding scale tax credits for individuals and families who need it, according to the plan.
Dr. Melissa Garretson, president of the Tarrant County Medical Society, said despite offering health insurance to every American, there will be those who choose not to follow through for one reason or another. She pointed to Massachusetts, which mandated that every resident must have health insurance or pay a fine. People still opt out of insurance and pay the fine.
“We don’t have a single mandated program that people take 100 percent advantage of,” Garretson said.
America has an estimated 45 million uninsured, and the best way to provide medical care to anybody is to ensure they have a medical home. However, right now there are not enough physicians to provide every one of those individuals a medical home once they do have some kind of insurance, Garretson said. Encouraging primary care specialties and protecting the daily finances of a physician is important for the future, she said. For example, private practices are small businesses, but insurance companies often donÂ’t pay full price for services.
Elizabeth Bassett, Aleshia Howe and John-Laurent Tronche
contributed to this report
