National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) Chief Lobbyist and Senior Vice President Jerry Giovaniello is retiring at the end of the year. Giovaniello, who has been with NAR for 37 years, will continue on until the association names a replacement, and will assist with the transition. Beginning later this month, the search for a successor will be overseen by NAR Chief Advocacy Officer and Senior Vice President Bill Malkasian.
“Jerry has had a distinguished nearly four-decade career at NAR, protecting the interests of REALTORS®, the real estate industry, and current and future property owners,” says NAR CEO Bob Goldberg. “NAR’s advocacy efforts have greatly expanded and grown in influence in recent decades, and Jerry has contributed greatly to those efforts. On behalf of NAR’s leadership, staff and a million-plus members, I thank Jerry for his dedication and hard work, which will have a lasting and meaningful impact, and I congratulate him on his retirement.”
“As a sixth-generation REALTOR®, I am extremely proud of what Jerry has accomplished for the REALTOR® family,” says NAR President Elizabeth Mendenhall. “For the past 40 years, the association and its members have been positively impacted by Jerry’s incredible work, and he has contributed so much to our success.”
Giovaniello joined NAR in 1981 from Capitol Hill, where he was chief of staff for two members of Congress from California. He was named NAR’s chief lobbyist in 2001, and is a fixture in the halls of Congress. Giovaniello has developed longstanding relationships with legislators on both sides of the aisle, and a reputation for ensuring REALTORS®’ voices are heard on important policy issues.
Under Giovaniello’s direction, NAR achieved numerous legislative and regulatory accomplishments. He led fights to oppose a flat tax proposal in the late ’90s, to permanently prohibit banks from entering real estate brokerage, and to persuade Congress to pass mortgage debt relief and a first-time homebuyer tax credit during very challenging times for the housing market and economy after the financial collapse. His leadership helped secure the continuation of the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), and, most recently, he successfully led efforts to persuade policymakers against slashing homeowner tax benefits, like the mortgage interest and property tax deductions.
For more information, please visit www.nar.realtor.
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