Meet your Government Affairs team

GCAAR is proud to introduce you to the people who are constantly advocating for your interests at every level of government within GCAAR. They include:

Katalin Peter, Esq.

Vice President of Public Policy and General Counsel Evan Loukadakis

Associate Government Affairs and Political Director Zachary Trupp

Associate Government Affairs Director

Katalin Peter (KP): I proactively work to foster relationships and advocate for policies and legislation in Montgomery County and the district that best serve the interests of REALTORS® and the REALTOR® community. We track and monitor every piece of legislation that is put out by the government and analyze its potential effect on the real estate industry. We work to either promote it or stop it from moving forward and engage our members when calls for action are needed for an even more powerful impact. Zachary Trupp (ZT): As the associate government affairs director for GCAAR, I focus on Montgomery County and the Maryland state legislature, along with our state government affairs directors at Maryland REALTORS®. We care about every issue that impacts our members and their day-to-day lives. Evan Loukadakis (EL): Zac and I share similar roles, and I serve as our members’ eyes and ears for the district. I sift through everything that’s shared by legislators to see what would be valuable to our members, and find out what they would need to know.

KP: If there are members running into challenges, roadblocks, any sort of obstacles when it comes to their work with government agencies, we can serve as liaisons for them. If there are laws being proposed that would have a negative impact on the industry, we can be responsive for them.

For forms issues, information about a bill, confusion about taxes or other questions, reach out to GCAAR at advocacy@gcaar.com and we can help.

ZT: The same way you would keep in contact with any of your colleagues, we’re making sure that we’re in communication with legislators and that we’re working with them even on issues that we may disagree with. We keep the lines of communication open. EL: I’m attending every webinar, everything in [legislators’] virtual worlds, including council members’ informal Zoom meetups with constituents. I always have my notepad next to me just in case something comes up. KP: Evan was recently on a call with a council member, and they brought up potentially rolling back the exemption to the single-family Tenant Opportunity to Purchase Act (TOPA). This was the biggest issue to our members, and it was mentioned just in passing. When we hear about something like that at a community meeting, that gives me the immediate trigger to call my other council colleagues and say, “Hey, what’s up with this?” So if something does come up, it’s coming up before an idea even becomes a seed, and we’re paying attention to it.

ZT: It’s government policy. The crafting, amending and changing of policy and the effects it has on the real world. EL: My father has always owned residential properties and commercial properties. So being able to represent members who are the little guy, small housing providers, and making sure they’re treated fairly is very personal for me. KP: I’d say, as an attorney, shaping the law leads to better practice of the law, and if you can shape legislation before it ends up in litigation—and before members have to deal with litigation—it makes for a better environment. To reach out to GCAAR’s Government Affairs team, please email advocacy@gcaar.com.