REBNY implements senior staff changes: Thomas appointed senior vice president, Hum named general counsel

 

 

Manhattan, NY The Real Estate Board of New York (REBNY) has appointed Reggie Thomas as senior VP for government affairs. Thomas will build and maintain REBNY’s strong relationships with elected officials on the city, state, and federal level with the purpose of advancing the organization’s interests and agenda. He will work closely with REBNY’s units to analyze legislation, testify on behalf of the industry at public hearings, and develop advocacy campaigns on key issues.

Thomas comes to REBNY with more than 10 years of experience in government affairs. In his most recent role with Cozen O’Connor Public Strategies, Thomas worked as a government affairs principal. Thomas will work alongside John Doyle, REBNY’s senior VP for government affairs, who will retire from fulltime responsibilities after 31 years of service, to a consulting role, effective May 1st.

Doyle began his career with REBNY in January 1987, and represented REBNY before the New York City Council throughout the tenure of five council speakers and five mayors. He advocated on behalf of the industry on a wide array of issues from commercial rent control and recycling to street vendors. In the 1990’s, Doyle organized industry and community opposition to a proposed property tax increase. He also administered REBNY’s Ethics and Arbitration processes.

From 2011 through 2015, Reggie Thomas served mayors Bill de Blasio and Michael Bloomberg in the Office of City Legislative Affairs as first deputy director and senior policy advisor. From 2009 to 2011, Thomas was the director of legislative & budget affairs for then-New York City Council Land Use Committee chairman Leroy Comrie. Thomas started his career as an aide to then-Manhattan borough president Scott Stringer. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Pace University and currently resides in Lower Manhattan where he serves on Community Board 1.

“We salute John Doyle for everything he’s done on behalf of our industry. For more than three decades, John’s advocacy and sound judgement has served our community well,” said REBNY president John Banks. “We are delighted to welcome Reggie Thomas to the REBNY team; he brings a tremendous level of experience dealing with government and public policy. Reggie will be an asset to REBNY and our members as we continue to work on issues such as creating more affordable rental housing, jobs, and economic growth that is critical to New York City’s future.”

“We are excited for our colleague Reggie Thomas as he moves into this substantial new position. We congratulate REBNY for recognizing Reggie’s talent, and look forward to continuing to work together on matters of importance to the real estate industry throughout New York City and state,” said Katie Schwab, practice director at Cozen O'Connor.

REBNY also announced the promotion of Carl Hum to a newly created role of general counsel, which will complement his current responsibilities as senior vice president for management services and government affairs. Hum joined REBNY in 2015 as the lead advocate on  construction safety, building codes management, sustainability, and federal policy.  His previous legal roles were Manhattan assistant district attorney, deputy general counsel at the NYC Department of Small Business Services, and counsel at Reese Richman LLP. Hum will administer REBNY’s ethics and arbitration processes.

“We congratulate Carl on his new role as REBNY’s General Counsel. Carl’s legal expertise will help us to better serve our members on a broad range of legal and compliance issues, litigation strategies, and other matters,” said Banks.