GENERAL SESSION: Discussion with Senator Mark Warner (D-VA)

Senior Vice President, Legislative and Political Affairs, Mortgage Bankers Association

Bill Killmer is Senior Vice President for Legislative and Political Affairs at the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA). A veteran of over three decades in the housing arena, Bill joined MBA in 2010 and is responsible for managing the real estate finance industry's federal legislative, grassroots, and political fundraising activities, in close coordination with the MBA member leadership and its public policy, economics, public affairs, and lobbying teams. He oversees MBA's direct outreach to Congress, and is a regular guest speaker on the intersection of politics, policy, and industry issues. Under Killmer's leadership, grassroots participation through MBA's Mortgage Action Alliance has doubled, while donations to MORPAC, the industry's political action committee, have more than tripled, enhancing the association's ability to develop and execute effective advocacy strategies on the industry's behalf. Killmer came to MBA after nearly 20 years in the policy space at the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), where he last served as Executive Vice President for Advocacy, managing all aspects of the group's public policy outreach. During his tenure at both organizations, he has been named as a Washington trade association "Top Lobbyist" by publications such as The Hill and CEO Update. He previously served as a Senior Legislative Officer for Congressional and Intergovernmental Affairs at the U.S. Department of Labor during the George H.W. Bush administration. Killmer holds a Bachelor's degree in Business Administration (BBA), with a concentration in Finance, from Baylor University.

Senior Member of the Senate Finance and Banking Committees, U.S. Senate

Sen. Warner was elected to the U.S. Senate in November 2008 and reelected to a third term in November 2020. He serves as Chairman of the Select Committee on Intelligence and as a member of the Senate Finance, Banking, Budget, and Rules Committees. During his time in the Senate, Sen. Warner has established himself as a bipartisan leader who works across the aisle to accomplish real solutions for Virginians. He has served as a key author and negotiator of several pieces of critical legislation aimed at rebuilding our nation’s infrastructure, improving cybersecurity, restoring domestic manufacturing, protecting national security, rebounding from the COVID-19 crisis, and investing in underserved and underbanked communities. Sen. Warner has been recognized as a national leader in fighting for families, hardworking Virginians, and our brave servicemembers. From protecting the highest levels of national security through his work leading the Senate Intelligence Committee, to fighting to expand broadband to every corner of the Commonwealth, Sen. Warner has been a tireless advocate for a safer, stronger, more prosperous Virginia. From 2002 to 2006, he served as Governor of Virginia. When he left office in 2006, Virginia was ranked as the best state for business, the best-managed state, and the best state in which to receive a public education. The first in his family to graduate from college, Sen. Warner spent 20 years as a successful technology and business leader in Virginia before entering public office. An early investor in the cellular telephone business, he co-founded the company that became Nextel and invested in hundreds of start-up technology companies that created tens of thousands of jobs. Sen. Warner and his wife Lisa Collis live in Alexandria, Virginia. They have three daughters.