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How GAAR Government Affairs Works for Members

Posted on Aug 01, 2026
Posted in Advocacy, GAAR News, GAAR in the Community

This spring marked an important step forward for GAAR’s Government Affairs Committee (GAC). The committee held its first meeting in April, bringing members together to establish a more informed, coordinated, and proactive approach to public policy and advocacy on behalf of Greater Albuquerque REALTORS®.

Across the country, REALTOR® associations play a distinct role in advocating for real estate and defending individual private property rights. While the priorities and approach of each association may reflect its local environment, the underlying purpose is consistent: ensuring the real estate industry has an informed voice in public-policy conversations that affect property owners, housing, and the communities REALTORS® serve.

At GAAR, the Government Affairs Committee helps carry that responsibility forward at the local level. GAC's work is centered on issues with a meaningful connection to housing, real estate, private property rights, homeownership, housing supply, and the ability of REALTORS® to serve their clients and communities.

The committee's goal is to provide an informed real estate perspective when public policy materially affects housing, property rights, homeownership, the real estate industry, or the communities our members serve.

Building a Framework for Effective Advocacy

The Government Affairs Committee has three interconnected areas of focus:

Developing well-informed policy recommendations on issues affecting housing and real estate.
Strengthening relationships with elected officials, government leaders, community stakeholders, and allied organizations.
Helping GAAR effectively communicate and advocate for policy positions adopted by the association.

Together, these responsibilities create a framework that allows GAAR to determine not only how to engage on an issue, but when an issue has a sufficient connection to the association’s mission to warrant involvement.

Over the last several months, the committee has been discussing how GAAR should develop and communicate policy positions, how information should flow between the GAC and other GAAR committees, and how the association can build a consistent approach to internal and external outreach.

From those conversations, four key initiatives are now in development:

A New GAC Meeting Agenda
Future meetings will include updates from other GAAR committees as well as reports from GAC subcommittees. This structure will help members identify connections across the association, recognize emerging issues earlier, and determine when coordinated attention may be needed.
A GAAR Policy Brief
The committee is developing a concise resource outlining the association’s general positions on a range of housing and real estate policy issues. This initial brief will help establish a consistent framework for evaluating public-policy issues and will serve as the foundation for a more comprehensive policy document planned for completion by the end of the year.
A Legislative Outreach Map
The GAC is identifying existing relationships and lines of communication among GAAR members, committee members, elected leaders, government officials, and professionals in affiliated industries. Understanding where strong relationships already exist and where new ones need to be developed will help GAAR coordinate outreach more effectively while building durable institutional relationships that extend beyond any individual committee member or leadership term.
A GAC Communication Plan
The committee is developing internal talking points and a broader communications strategy to support members as the GAC becomes increasingly engaged in public-policy conversations. One of the first priorities will be sharing what the committee has been working on and outlining its goals for the remainder of 2026 and into 2027.

These projects may sound like infrastructure, and in many ways, they are. Effective advocacy requires more than responding to legislation or an ordinance after it appears.

It requires clear policy positions, informed members, established relationships, consistent communication, and a disciplined process for determining when and how the association should engage. Building those systems now will help GAAR approach government affairs strategically rather than relying primarily on individual relationships or reacting to issues as they arise.

It also helps establish an important boundary. Not every public-policy discussion requires a position from GAAR. The committee’s role is to help evaluate issues through the lens of the association’s mission and determine where GAAR’s expertise and perspective can contribute meaningfully to the conversation.

As the Government Affairs Committee moves forward, its work will increasingly be shaped by the expertise and involvement of its members. The goal is to develop a GAC capable of identifying emerging issues early, developing informed policy recommendations, strengthening relationships before they are needed, and ensuring GAAR is a credible and constructive voice in public-policy conversations affecting housing and real estate.

There is much more work ahead, but the framework being developed today will help GAAR become more informed, coordinated, proactive, and effective in public policy while remaining disciplined about when an issue legitimately warrants the association’s involvement.