Away will you have to change the guidelines for Eminent Domain from like the case and rhode island are you going to change the guidelines to say we will take your homes because you cannot afford the mortgage, read develop another community develop another community will you change the laws for Eminent Domain . And two how are you addressing the loss or does everybody have to be a homeowner . Is it ok to beat a renter . Be a renter . There was a piece of that that i wanted to speak to because you got at something i was alluding to earlier. If, in fact, the program does not require that the previous owner has the right to buy a home back, those properties, balloons could be purchased and the homeowners could be out of their homes. That was the concern i was racing. I thought that got your point about what if the government uses its authority to buy those loans and say by definition of this program you are upside down by x percentage and you cannot afford the loan so we purchased it and we will use your property for other purposes. For the most part, these proposals, as far as i know, are not taking the home, they are taking the mortgage. The person who is a homeowner is still a homeowner and still owes the mortgage just to a different person. Correct. The proposals have been to take mortgages on owneroccupied homes by Eminent Domain. This is because the owner really want someone to buy the mortgage. The connecticut cases the when you are referring to and i dont think that has a lot to do with these circumstances. Laws are in place in every state. What is fair market value . How do you do it . It is in the fifth amendment. Just compensation i want to get in one more audience question. The panel began by a acknowledging that the Housing Market was coming back in many communities across the country. Does anybody on the panel have a sense of how this comeback reflected gentrification that has simply displays a lot of low income people for reasons that may have nothing to do with the foreclosure crisis but simply because of a preceding Property Values in the neighborhood . From your question, you and i have sympathetic political views. I am not sure that is happening now. I think we have a little further to fall in the Housing Market. The ironclad rule of economics that of something cannot go on for ever it will stop and home prices have been falling for so long, so far, that at some point, it will stop. There has already been an enormous amount of damage. There is still a lot of downward pressure and a lot of foreclosures in front of us, a lot of the Housing Market is people moving up by buying a bigger house. There is still a lot of downward pressure. It will not come roaring back. We have had five years now of Housing Starts being about 1 3 of the National Demand we have seen for 15 years before the bubble. There was some excess we had to burn off. We are way past that now and it comes from new household formation, second homes, to some extent, and it comes from replacing dilapidated housing. I think that is the reason it slowed down more than anything else we can take another last question. Congressman miller, the challenge was for mrp to sit down with your organization and talk price. When should we come down and sit down with your organization about price . We have had a few sit down. We could probably sell tickets to those said downs. [laughter] we could probably make a lot of money. I want to take more one more actual audience question. There is this person in the fourth row , i am from the Mortgage Bankers association. You mentioned you are working with these communities to develop solutions that make the most sense. Do you plan to extend that to the level of working with the Political Leadership in these communities to develop tailored appraisal and valuation methodologies that make the most amount of sense for the communities individually . Tailored. T taylor d the law dictates Eminent Domain. If we agreed on price, all of a sudden a lot of this goes away. And investors will get fairly treated. This could make an enormous difference. They are not customized evaluation. We can get the best estimate fair market value but they are not customized solutions. The key question and the key differential we have here in terms of agreeing on the price is what Eminent Domain brings to the price is involuntary. Police power of the government to take or steal the mortgages at a belowmarket price. The last word . I have said this before this is not an unusual government power. It is probably the most commonly used government power. There are many procedures developed over centuries. There are jury trials happening in every corner of america determining fair market value, in condemnation proceedings, and on and on. This is not that unusual. The reason for so much consternation by the mortgage investors is that securitization is so screwed up that they cannot trust anyone to protect our interests. If they are getting paid fair market value, what a willing seller would agree to sell to a willing buyer, that is the legal standard. I dont think there would be much of a problem. Their concern is that the servicers, the trustees, will not protect their interests and will throw in the towel. If we can get past that, that concern would have some justice behind it. This would be a way to get ahead of the cycle of home foreclosures that we still have not broken. Desperate times demand desperate responses. Even though the market is stabilizing generally, many communities across the country are really hamstrung and harmed by extraordinary amounts of upside down debt. This Eminent Domain proposal is a viable one and it should be considered and it should be discussed. If a properly designed, i think it could have a huge impact on the market. I would caution that while communities across the country, there are abuses of Eminent Domain right across the country in communities across the country on an ongoing and daily basis. This has to be very clearly defined and will monitored. If it is done properly, this could be an extraordinary opportunity for the Housing Market particularly in the most distressed communities. Before i close, there are materials in the back. There will probably be folks from mrp and various investor groups. Choose who you want to talk to. On february 1, we will have our next Housing Panel on the question of down payments. We will start looking at the firsttime home buyers and what is really going on out there. I want to thank the panelists who were fantastic. This was very fun and i hope it was as fun for everyone as it was for me. We hope to have you back here soon and thank you all for coming. [applause] [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions Copyright National cable satellite corp. 2013] new Jersey Governor Chris Christie said the 41,000 families still blessed displaced from their homes and perkin sandy hit the east coast. His remarks are next on cspan. On this mornings [video clip] journal we will talk about the winter season. New Jersey Governor Chris Christie delivered his third annual state of the state address today in trenton where he focused on Hurricane Center recovery efforts. Last week, Congress Approved 9. 7 billion of Flood Insurance aid. They are expected to vote on additional 51 billion package on january 15. This is from the state house in trenton [applause] [applause] [applause] [applause] [applause] [applause] [applause] thank you. Thank you very much. [applause] thank you very much. Thank you. [applause] thank you. Thank you all very much. Thank you. Thank you all very much. Lieutenant governor guadagno, madam speaker, mr. President , members of the legislature, fellow New Jerseyans, since George Washington delivered the first state of the union in new york on this day in 1790, it has been the tradition of executive leaders to report on the condition of the nation and state at the beginning of the legislative year. So it is my honor and pleasure to give you this report on the state of our state. One year ago, we were scheduled to gather on this second tuesday in january when our friend and colleague alex decroce passed suddenly the night before, causing us to delay this report. I miss the hard work and kind spirit of alex. I think of him often, but i am so pleased to see his wife betty lou here in this chamber as a duly elected member of the assembly today. She continues his work and does honor to his memory. Thank you, betty lou. [applause] just three months ago, we were proceeding normally with our lives, getting ready for a National Election and the holidays to follow. Then sandy hit. Sandy was the worst storm to strike new jersey in 100 years. 346,000 homes were damaged or destroyed. Nearly 7 Million People and 1,000 schools had their power knocked out. 116,000 New Jerseyans were evacuated or displaced from their homes. 41,000 families are still displaced from their homes. Sandy may have damaged our homes and our infrastructure, but it did not destroy our spirit. The people of new jersey have come together as never before across party lines, across ideological lines, across ages, races and backgrounds, from all parts of our state, even from out of state. Everyone has come together. So today, let me start this address with a set of thank yous from me on behalf of the great people of this state. First, i want to thank the brave First Responders, national guard, and Emergency Management experts who prepared us for this storm and kept us safe in its aftermath. [applause] i want to thank the members of this legislature for their cooperation in answering sandys challenges and for being by my side as i toured so many of the devastated areas of our state. I want to thank the Community Food bank of new jersey, the southern baptists, the Salvation Army and the american red cross, who helped us deliver over one Million Pounds of food and over five million meals and snacks to families who needed them. They are part of a network of organizations, a family really, who make life better in new jersey every day and who really came through when the times were toughest. Thank you to them. [applause] i want to thank the new Jersey Business and Industry Association, the state chamber of commerce, the commerce and Industry Association of new jersey and the National Federation of independent businesses for keeping us in touch with the needs of Small Businesses in the wake of the storm, so new jersey can help get these businesses back on their feet. As soon as possible and working again for the people of this state. Thank you for those organizations. [applause] i want to thank the 17,000 out ofstate utility workers who came to new jersey from all over america and joined with 10,000 of our own to get power restored as quickly as possible so that within nine days of this horrific storm, electric power had been restored to 90 of customers. Let me thank all the governors, republicans and democrats, from across america who sent their utility workers here and let me thank those utility workers who worked 18 hours per day, seven days per week, to make sure that new jersey got back to normal. [applause] i want to thank the members of my cabinet and senior staff, who for days before the storm and weeks after it, put their own personal losses aside, worked 18 hours a day and slept very little. They led their departments and their dedicated colleagues in putting the safety and well being of others ahead of their own. To everyone who opened their new jersey and i were well served by these public servants, thank you all. [applause] to everyone who opened their homes, assisted senior citizens, fed their neighbors, counseled the griefstricken, or pitched in to clear debris, remove sand, or get a school back opened, i say thank you. To all of you. You have helped define new jersey as a community, one which, when faced with adversity, rolls up its sleeves, gets back to work, and in word and deed shows that it will never, ever give up. And make no mistake, we will be back, stronger than ever. The spirit of our new Jersey Community was shown in the days immediately after the storm. In sea bright, mary pat was by the side of one Small Businessman at the moment when he was allowed to return to his business and see what sandy had done to his restaurant, a pizzeria. As the plywood was removed, allowing him to see for the very first time the destruction of his means of earning a living, he turned and said without hesitation, dont worry. We will build this back better than it was. His words were forceful. They were optimistic. And they were emblematic, capturing the indomitable spirit of this state. And he was just one example of how new jersey and its citizens were showing our whole country how to bravely and resolutely deal with a crisis. Citizens like frank smith, jr. , the volunteer chief of the moonachie first aid squad. The storm. His headquarters were destroyed during the storm. After securing the safety of his three young children, he did not take himself to higher ground. No, he led his team through fires and flood waters, through buildings and trailer parks, and saved over 2,000 lives. Moonachies citizens were saved because he put them first. [applause] frank, thanks for your bravery. In toms river, marsha hedgepeth, [applause] in toms river, marcia, an emergency room technician, had the day off when sandy hit her hometown. She could have gotten herself to safety and forgotten about her colleagues at the Community Medical center and most importantly her patients. Instead, facing several feet of water on her flooded street, she swam to higher ground, then hitchhiked with a utility worker from michigan and got to the hospital for a 12hour shift treating her fellow citizens. Who were harmed by the storm,swimming through flood waters to save lives. Marcia is here. Such a great example. [applause] [applause] in brick, tracey keelen and jay gehweiler watched as the flood waters consumed their town. Concerned about jays father, they tried to reach him and could not. Not content to wait, they put on their wet suits, got in their row boat and rescued jays dad. That would be a great story if it ended there. In the process, they saw dozens homes. After they got his father to safety, they turned back around and, one by one, saved over 50 of jays fathers neighbors along with their pets. Then, for those they rescued who had no place to go, they housed them as well. They admitted they did not know these neighbors that well before the storm, but they didnt care. They put extending a helping hand in a crisis ahead of social comfort. Thank you to tracey and jay for saving lives and making a difference. [applause] [applause] New Jerseyans are among the toughest, grittiest, and most generous people in america. These citizens are a small example of that simple truth. Our pride in our state in our moment of loss and challenge is reflected in the eyes of these extraordinary people. You see, some things are above politics. Things. These folks stand for the truth of that statement. [applause] [applause] we now look forward to what we hope will be quick congressional action on a full, clean sandy aid bill now, next week and to enactment by the president. [applause] [applause] we have waited 72 days, seven times longer than victims of Hurricane Katrina waited. One thing i hope everyone now clearly understands new jersey, both republicans and democrats, will never stand silent when our citizens are being short changed. [applause] [applause] the people of new jersey are in need, not from their own actions but from an act of god that delivered a natural, human, and financial disaster and we are thankful to the people of america for honoring the tradition of providing relief. We have stood with the citizens of florida, alabama, mississippi, louisiana, iowa, vermont, california and missouri in their times of need. With us. [applause] [applause] so make no mistake. New jerseys spirit has never been stronger. Our resolve never more firm. Our unity never more obvious. Let there also be no mistake much work still lies ahead. Damage that comes only once in a century will take in some cases years to repair. Here is some of what we have done already we have created a cabinetlevel position to coordinate the states efforts across every agency, and marc ferzan is here today, ready to work with you on this restoration effort. Weve requested the federal government to pay 100 of the costs of the significant debris removal that we require and have already received 18 million for that task. We have secured 20 million from the federal Highway Administration for Emergency Repair of our roads, bridges and tunnels a down payment on a major Infrastructure Task ahead. We have directed our department of Environmental Protection to streamline approvals for restoring critical infrastructure. We have overseen the removal of over 2. 5 million cubic yards of debris to date and counting. 17 towns have already completed debris removal. Over 1,000 trucks are working daily to continue dry land debris removal with 26 more towns moving towards completion. We are now removing d