Governor McKee submitted legislation in the last session of the General Assembly to create an Advisory Council on Housing and Homelessness, and it was enacted by them.

The goal of this Council is to advise the Executive Office of Housing on its policies and programs. The Council will be comprised of 20 individuals who represent expertise and interests outside of government that relate to housing issues. These individuals will serve for three years and are term limited to two consecutive terms.

Deborah J. Goddard, Secretary of the Rhode Island Executive Office of Housing, and a panelist along with Speaker Shekarchi at RIMBA’s recent State of the State of Housing in RI event, reached out to our current President, Ben Pettit.

We quote, “the Executive Office believes that the MORTGAGE BANKING INDUSTRY should be represented on the Council.”

Upon receiving the invitation, it took Ben about 15 seconds to react, most of that time was spent dialing the number that Secretary Goddard gave him.  After Ben accepted the gracious invitation, the two spoke at length about her vision of how this Council can help to most efficiently guide her in meeting the challenges that exist.

Thanks to Ben’s efforts, RIMBA has a seat at the table. This invitation that we received would not have been possible if Secretary Goddard was not convinced that RIMBA is the voice of the mortgage industry in RI.

Please keep this in mind when you receive your renewal notices for 2026 in the very near future and continue to support that voice.