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Owen D. Thomas is the Chairman and CEO of BXP. He is a Director of Lehman Brothers Holdings and served as its first Chairman from 2012 until 2013 when he joined BXP. Prior to Lehman, Mr. Thomas was with Morgan Stanley for 24 years serving in a number of different roles, business units and locations, including Chief Executive Officer of Morgan Stanley Asia and Chairman of Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan Stanley Securities, while living in Hong Kong from 2008 until 2011. He also held the roles of President of Morgan Stanley Investment Management, Head of Morgan Stanley Real Estate and served on Morgan Stanley’s Management Committee from 2005 until 2011.
Mr. Thomas is a Director of the Real Estate Roundtable, a member of the Advisory Board of Governors of the National Association of Real Estate Investment Trusts, and a member of the Economic Club of New York. He is former Chairman of the Urban Land Institute and of the Pension Real Estate Association. He attended and is Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Woodberry Forest School, received a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Virginia and an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School.
Jeff DeBoer is the founding President and CEO of The Real Estate Roundtable. He has been at the forefront of national policy affecting the real estate industry for the past 40 years.
The Real Estate Roundtable represents the leadership of the nation’s top 150 privately owned and publicly-held real estate ownership, development, lending and management firms, as well as the elected leaders of the 18 major national real estate industry trade associations. Roundtable member portfolios contain over 12 billion square feet of office, retail and industrial properties valued at nearly $4 trillion; over 5 million apartment units; and in excess of 6 million hotel rooms. The 18 national trade associations participating with the Roundtable represent more than 3 million people directly employed in the real estate industry.
Mr. DeBoer also chairs the National Real Estate Organizations, a 18 member real estate trade association coalition focused on industry communication, advocacy and diversity efforts as well as the Real Estate Industry Information Sharing and Analysis Center (RE-ISAC), an organization dedicated to enhancing communication between the industry and federal policymakers on terrorism threats, building security, and major incident reporting. He is a founding member of the steering committee of the Coalition to Insure Against Terrorism (CIAT) and for several years he co-chaired the Advisory Board of the RAND Corporation’s Center for Terrorism Risk Management Policy. Mr. DeBoer previously served on the Advisory Board of Washington DC’s Smithsonian National Zoological Park and Conservation Biology Institute.
Mr. DeBoer has discussed real estate and economic policy issues numerous times in Congressional testimony as well as on FOX News, Bloomberg Television, MSNBC and CNBC; and his editorials have been published in the Wall Street Journal and USA Today. In 2010, Globest.com named Mr. DeBoer a “top 10 Industry Newsmaker of the Decade”; in 2013 Commercial Property Executive named him one of the “30 most influential people in real estate”; in 2016 Real Estate Forum honored him as the “Voice of the Industry” and one of the nation’s top CRE bosses; in 2017 Washington Life Magazine included Mr. DeBoer in its “Power 100” list of Washington DC’s most influential unelected, non-governmental people; and since 2017, The Hill has placed Mr. DeBoer on its annual list of the top lobbyists in Washington DC, a list it called: “the players at the top of their game, known for their ability to successfully navigate the byzantine and competitive world of federal policymaking.” In 2024, in recognition of his positive influence on national public policy, Commercial Property Executive presented Mr. DeBoer with its Lifetime Achievement award.
Mr. DeBoer earned degrees from Washington and Lee University School of Law (JD) and Yankton College (BA).
Representative Mike Bost represents Illinois’ 12th Congressional District, which covers 34 counties in southern Illinois. He has served in the U.S. House of Representatives since 2015 and chairs the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs.
As chairman, Rep. Bost helped lead passage of the VA Home Loan Program Reform Act, which became law in July 2025. The law established a partial claim program to help eligible veterans who have fallen behind on their VA mortgages avoid foreclosure. In 2026, he joined colleagues in introducing the VA Home Loan Affordability Act to streamline the homebuying process for veterans and their families.
Rep. Bost also serves on the House Transportation and Infrastructure and Agriculture Committees. His transportation assignments include highways and transit, railroads and pipelines, and water resources. He co-chairs the Congressional Fire Services Caucus.
Before coming to Congress, Rep. Bost served two decades in the Illinois House of Representatives, where he chaired the House Republican Caucus. A native of Murphysboro, he served in the U.S. Marine Corps from 1979 to 1982 and was honorably discharged as a corporal. He later worked in his family’s trucking business and served as a firefighter in Murphysboro.
(University of Illinois Certified Firefighter II Academy, 1993)
Terry McAuliffe served as the 72nd Governor of Virginia from 2014 to 2018. A businessman and veteran political strategist, he focused his administration on economic development, infrastructure investment and workforce preparation to strengthen Virginia’s business climate and diversify its economy.
As Governor, McAuliffe conducted 35 trade missions and helped attract more than $20 billion in new capital investment to communities across the Commonwealth. During his term, Virginia’s unemployment rate declined from 5.4 percent to 3.6 percent, and personal income rose 12.3 percent.
McAuliffe secured bipartisan support for a $1 billion investment in public and higher education and oversaw initiatives to strengthen workforce training. His administration also announced $10 billion in new road and rail projects, supported the Port of Virginia and strengthened Dulles International Airport.
He also led efforts that made Virginia the first state certified to have functionally ended veteran homelessness. He served as Chairman of the National Governors Association and made cybersecurity a priority, working to strengthen state capabilities and protect consumer transactions and Commonwealth data.
McAuliffe chaired the Democratic National Committee from 2001 to 2005. He co-chaired President Bill Clinton’s 1996 reelection campaign and 1997 Presidential Inauguration, chaired the 2000 Democratic National Convention, and chaired Hillary Clinton’s 2008 presidential campaign.
He is the author of the bestselling books What A Party! and Beyond Charlottesville: Taking A Stand Against White Nationalism.
(The Catholic University of America; Georgetown University Law Center)
Marc Short is a partner at Advance Strategies and a political and policy commentator. He previously served as Chief of Staff to Vice President Mike Pence and as Assistant to the President and Director of Legislative Affairs in the first Trump administration.
As White House legislative affairs director, Mr. Short worked on passage of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act and the confirmation of Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch. His experience spans executive branch policymaking, congressional leadership and business advocacy.
Before joining the Trump-Pence campaign, Mr. Short served as President of Freedom Partners Chamber of Commerce, a business league with an annual budget exceeding $300 million. He also served as Chief of Staff to the House Republican Conference under then-Representative Mike Pence and to Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison of Texas.
Mr. Short has been a partner at GuidePost Strategies, a CNN commentator and a Senior Fellow at the University of Virginia’s Miller Center. He was also a spring 2024 Fellow at Georgetown University’s Institute of Politics and Public Service.
Earlier in his career, he served as Executive Director of the Reagan Ranch from 1998 to 2001 and Executive Director of Freedom Alliance from 1995 to 1998.
(Washington and Lee University; M.B.A.; University of Virginia Darden School of Business)
Representative Richard Neal was first elected to the House in 1988 to represent the 2nd District of Massachusetts, which includes cities and towns in western and central Massachusetts. Rep. Neal now represents Massachusetts’ 1st District and serves as Ranking Member of the House Ways and Means Committee.
Since 1992, he has served in his party’s leadership as an at-large Democratic whip, helping to build support for key Democratic initiatives.
Rep. Neal has a long bipartisan legislative history of fighting to preserve and protect Medicare and Social Security. He has also been a lead sponsor of legislation to prevent American companies from moving offshore to avoid paying U.S. taxes. As a Member of the Ways and Means Committee, Rep. Neal consistently cosponsored and supported efforts to reform the Foreign Investment in Real Property Tax Act (FIRPTA).
Rep. Neal previously co-chaired the bipartisan Congressional Real Estate Caucus, bringing lawmakers and industry leaders together to discuss how federal policy affects the real estate sector.
Rep. Neal spearheaded a number of historic legislative achievements during the 116th and 117th Congress, including the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, marking the largest long-term investment in our infrastructure and economy in our nation's history, and the Chips and Science Act, which will reinvigorate our nation’s domestic manufacturing of chips and incentivize research and development. In addition, Rep. Neal led efforts to pass the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), much of which was written in the Ways and Means Committee.
Rep. Neal began his public service career in 1973 as an assistant to Springfield, Massachusetts Mayor William C. Sullivan. In 1978, he was elected to the Springfield City Council and served as president of the Council in 1979. As mayor of the city of Springfield from 1984 until 1989, Neal combined creativity and pragmatism in developing economic, cultural and public works projects across the community. During his tenure as mayor, new economic development and private investment exceeded $400 million and a host of other downtown rehabilitation and neighborhood revitalization projects.
(BA American International College, 1972; MPA University of Hartford, 1976)
John Sitilides is Principal at Trilogy Advisors LLC in Washington, D.C., specializing in U.S. government relations, geopolitical risk, and international affairs, and is a National Security Senior Fellow at the Foreign Policy Research Institute.
Under a U.S. government contract under Presidents Biden, Trump, Obama, and Bush, Sitilides was Southern Europe Regional Coordinator at the Foreign Service Institute, the State Department's professional development and diplomacy academy for American foreign policy professionals.
He was Board Chairman of the Woodrow Wilson Center Southeast Europe Project (2005-2011), following seven years as Executive Director of the Western Policy Center, an international relations institute specializing in U.S., NATO & EU interests in Europe and the Middle East until he negotiated its 2004 merger with the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars.
He has testified before Congress and is a frequent national security commentator on U.S. and international media such as Bloomberg News, CNN, FOX News, CNN International, and NewsNation, and has been interviewed or cited in the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, Washington Post, Washington Times, Politico, National Public Radio, Asia Times, Institutional Investor, and other leading print and digital media.
Sitilides serves on the Executive Committee and Board of Trustees of Leadership 100, a national Orthodox Christian foundation.
He is a member of the Association of International Risk Intelligence Professionals, the Intelligence and National Security Alliance, the Columbia University Club of Washington, D.C., the Empire State Forum, and the Association of Former Senate Aides.
(BA, Queens College; MS, Columbia University)
Representative Jake Auchincloss represents Massachusetts’ 4th Congressional District. First elected in 2020, he is serving his third term in the House.
Rep. Auchincloss serves on the House Energy and Commerce Committee and its Subcommittees on Energy, Environment and Health. The committee’s work includes energy policy, environmental protection, health care, technology and telecommunications.
Before entering Congress, Rep. Auchincloss served on the Newton City Council from 2016 to 2020, where he chaired the Public Safety and Transportation Committee and served on the Land Use Committee. His local government work included housing, transportation, public safety and constituent services.
A Marine Corps veteran, Rep. Auchincloss served on active duty from 2010 to 2015. He commanded infantry in Afghanistan and led a reconnaissance mission in Panama, including a combined training mission with Colombian Special Forces.
Rep. Auchincloss also worked on housing and transportation at Liberty Mutual’s innovation lab. Earlier in his business career, he worked in cybersecurity and led a startup competition at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Born and raised in Newton, Rep. Auchincloss attended the city’s public schools before graduating from Harvard College and earning an M.B.A. at MIT.
(A.B., Harvard University, 2010; M.B.A., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2016)
Representative Mike Flood is serving his third term representing Nebraska’s 1st Congressional District. He currently serves on the House Financial Services Committee, where he is also Chairman of the Housing and Insurance Subcommittee.
In addition to his chairmanship, Rep. Flood is a member of the Financial Institutions Subcommittee and the Task Force on Monetary Policy, Treasury Market Resilience, and Economic Prosperity. He also serves as Chair of the Republican Main Street Caucus and is a member of the House Republican Policy Committee.
Rep. Flood has long been active in Northeast Nebraska economic development and community efforts. He served as the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Children’s Scholarship Fund, advancing its mission to open the doors of educational opportunity for families with financial need. He has also previously served on the Board of Directors for Invest Nebraska, which is committed to growing Nebraska’s economy by assisting entrepreneurs and investing capital in companies with growth potential.
Currently, Rep. Flood is a member of the U.S. Strategic Command Consultation Committee and a councilor for the Aksarben Foundation.
In 2005, Mike was elected to represent his hometown and surrounding Madison County in the Nebraska Legislature. In 2007, his colleagues elected him the youngest Speaker of the Legislature in Nebraska history. He served in the state legislature until 2013, and returned in 2020, before he was elected to Congress in 2022.
(BA University of Notre Dame, 1997; JD University of Nebraska, 2001)
Representative Andrew Garbarino represents New York’s 2nd Congressional District, which includes communities along Long Island’s South Shore. First elected to Congress in 2020, he became chairman of the House Committee on Homeland Security in July 2025. He previously chaired the Subcommittee on Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Protection.
As chairman, Rep. Garbarino introduced the WIMWIG Act (H.R. 5079), which would reauthorize the Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act of 2015 for 10 years. The Real Estate Roundtable supports the bill, which would preserve voluntary sharing of cyber threat information between the federal government and the private sector.
On the House Financial Services Committee, Rep. Garbarino is vice chairman of the Subcommittee on Capital Markets and serves on the Subcommittees on Housing and Insurance and Oversight and Investigations. He also co-chairs the Congressional SALT Caucus.
Before joining Congress, Rep. Garbarino served four terms in the New York State Assembly and practiced law in Sayville. He graduated from George Washington University and earned his law degree from Hofstra University.
Representative Tim Kennedy represents New York’s 26th Congressional District, including Buffalo and Niagara Falls. He was first elected to the House in a special election on April 30, 2024.
Rep. Kennedy serves on the House Homeland Security Committee, where he is Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Emergency Management and Technology and a member of the Subcommittee on Transportation and Maritime Security. He also serves on the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee and its Subcommittees on Economic Opportunity and Oversight and Investigations.
As Co-Chair of the bipartisan Northern Border Caucus, Rep. Kennedy works on border management, travel and commerce, and cooperation with Canada. His work also includes efforts to improve federal disaster assistance for communities affected by severe winter weather and strengthen services for veterans.
Before joining Congress, Rep. Kennedy served in the New York State Senate, where he chaired the Transportation Committee. He helped secure investments in public transportation, including Buffalo’s Metro Rail, and worked on road safety, infrastructure and regional economic development.
A lifelong Western New Yorker, Rep. Kennedy worked as an occupational therapist for 11 years, serving geriatric and pediatric patients before entering Congress.
(BA, MS, D’Youville University)
Representative Bill Huizenga has served as a U.S. representative since 2011 and currently represents Michigan's 4th Congressional District. Rep. Huizenga is a member of the influential House Financial Services Committee, where he serves Vice Chair, and also sits on the House Foreign Affairs Committee.
As House Financial Services Vice Chair, Rep. Huizenga’s extensive experience across the committee’s jurisdiction drives policy initiatives pertaining to economic growth and stabilization; domestic monetary policy and interest rates; the allocation of credit; and the structure and functioning of domestic financial institutions. Federal agencies under the oversight of the House Financial Services Committee include the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), the Federal Reserve, the Department of Treasury, and the Government Sponsored Enterprises (Fannie Mae & Freddie Mac).
Rep. Huizenga is an original member of the Bipartisan Fiscal Forum (BFF), a group founded during the 118th Congress that is dedicated to sounding the alarm about our nation’s unsustainable debt trajectory and working together to get control of our fiscal future. He serves as the Republican Co-Chair, working with the group’s members to elevate the debt issue while providing members with opportunities to improve the fiscal policy debate in Congress.
Rep. Huizenga has previously served on each of the House Financial Services Subcommittees, including Housing, Community Development, and Insurance; Investor Protection, Entrepreneurship, and Capital Markets; and Monetary Policy and Trade. During the 118th Congress, Rep. Huizenga served as the Chairman of the Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee, where he oversaw all agencies, departments, programs, and matters within the Financial Services Committee’s jurisdiction.
Prior to being elected to Congress, Rep. Huizenga served in the Michigan House of Representatives from 2003 to 2009.
Rep. Huizenga began his career as a realtor and entrepreneur. Today, he co-owns Huizenga Gravel Inc. located in Jenison, MI.
(BA, Calvin College)
Representative Darin LaHood represents Illinois’ 16th Congressional District, which spans communities across central and northwestern Illinois. He was first sworn into the House in September 2015 after winning a special election.
Rep. LaHood serves on the House Ways and Means Committee, where he chairs the Subcommittee on Work and Welfare and serves on the Subcommittee on Trade. He also serves on the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, where he chairs the Subcommittee on the National Security Agency and Cyber, and on the House Select Committee on the Strategic Competition Between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party.
His congressional work spans tax policy, trade, workforce participation, intelligence oversight and national security. He co-chairs the bipartisan U.S.-China Working Group and the Digital Trade Caucus, among other congressional groups.
Before joining Congress, Rep. LaHood served four years in the Illinois State Senate. He spent more than nine years as a state and federal prosecutor, including service as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in Las Vegas from 2001 to 2006, where he was selected as Chief Terrorism Prosecutor.
A Peoria native, Rep. LaHood also practiced law at Miller, Hall & Triggs before his election to Congress.
(B.A., Loras College; J.D., John Marshall Law School)
Representative Linda T. Sánchez represents California’s 38th Congressional District. First elected to Congress in 2002, she was the first Latina to serve on the House Ways and Means Committee and now serves as ranking member of its Trade Subcommittee. She also serves on the Health Subcommittee.
On Ways and Means, Rep. Sánchez has worked on tax policy, trade and retirement security. She has championed legislation to help small businesses offer retirement benefits and secured the transfer of a former tank farm site in Norwalk for local redevelopment.
Rep. Sánchez previously chaired the Congressional Hispanic Caucus and served as vice chair of the House Democratic Caucus and ranking member of the House Ethics Committee. She co-founded the Congressional Labor and Working Families Caucus.
Before entering Congress, Rep. Sánchez practiced labor law and served as executive secretary and treasurer of the Orange County AFL-CIO. She also worked on public works and prevailing wage compliance for the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers and the National Electrical Contractors Association.
(B.A., University of California, Berkeley, 1991. J.D., UCLA School of Law, 1995)
Representative Pete Sessions represents Texas’ 17th Congressional District. He was first elected to Congress in 1996 and served in the House from 1997 to 2019 before returning in January 2021.
Rep. Sessions serves on the House Financial Services Committee and its Subcommittees on Capital Markets and National Security, Illicit Finance, and International Financial Institutions. On the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, he chairs the Subcommittee on Government Operations and also serves on the Subcommittee on Health Care and Financial Services.
His current caucus leadership roles include Chairman of the Military & Veteran Housing Caucus and Co-Chairman of the Delivering Outstanding Government Efficiency (DOGE) Caucus and Congressional Scouting Caucus.
Rep. Sessions previously chaired the House Rules Committee from 2013 to 2019 and the National Republican Congressional Committee from 2009 through 2012. His legislative work has included health care access for children with disabilities and efforts to counter illegal cross-border tunnels.
Before entering Congress, Rep. Sessions spent 16 years with Southwestern Bell Telephone Company, retiring as a District Manager. An Eagle Scout, he has also held leadership roles in scouting, disability assistance and conservation organizations and served on the Board of Trustees of Southwestern University.
(B.S., Southwestern University, 1978)
Representative Greg Stanton represents Arizona’s 4th Congressional District and has served in the U.S. House since 2019. On the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, he is the ranking member of the Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings, and Emergency Management, which oversees federal real estate, including federal leasing and public buildings, as well as disaster preparedness and response.
Rep. Stanton also serves on the Aviation and Highways and Transit subcommittees, the House Foreign Affairs Committee and the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party. His work in Congress has focused on Arizona’s water resources and transportation investment. He also co-founded the Congressional Extreme Heat Caucus.
Before entering Congress, Rep. Stanton served as mayor of Phoenix from 2012 to 2018. He secured voter approval for a transportation plan to expand light rail, improve bus service and upgrade city streets. His administration also helped secure investments in bioscience and higher education.
Rep. Stanton previously served on the Phoenix City Council and as Arizona’s deputy attorney general.
(B.A., Marquette University, 1992. J.D.; University of Michigan Law School, 1995
Representative Tom Suozzi represents New York’s 3rd Congressional District, which includes parts of Long Island and Queens. He first served in the U.S. House from 2017 to January 2023, returned after winning a special election in February 2024, and won reelection in November 2026.
Rep. Suozzi serves on the House Ways and Means Committee and its Subcommittees on Tax and Oversight. He also serves on the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party. As co-chair of the bipartisan Problem Solvers Caucus and the Congressional SALT Caucus, he has worked across party lines and advocated for expanding the federal deduction for state and local taxes.
Before joining Congress, Rep. Suozzi served as mayor of his hometown of Glen Cove from 1994 to 2001 and as Nassau County executive from 2002 to 2009. He later worked as a senior advisor at Lazard and as of counsel at Harris Beach. Earlier in his career, he was a litigator at Shearman & Sterling, a federal court law clerk, and an auditor at Arthur Andersen.
(B.S., Boston College; J.D., Fordham University)
Representative Beth Van Duyne represents Texas’ 24th Congressional District, including communities in the Dallas-Fort Worth region. She was first elected to the House in 2020.
Rep. Van Duyne serves on the House Ways and Means Committee and its Subcommittees on Tax, Trade, Oversight, and Work and Welfare. She also serves on the House Small Business Committee, where she chairs the Subcommittee on Economic Growth, Tax, and Capital Access and serves on the Subcommittee on Oversight, Investigations, and Regulations.
Her additional leadership roles include Chairman of the Republican Study Committee’s Budget and Spending Task Force, Co-Chair of the Congressional Franchise Caucus and Co-Founder and Co-Chair of the Congressional Creators Caucus. She also founded the Congressional Mayors Caucus.
Before entering Congress, Rep. Van Duyne served as Regional Administrator for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Southwest Region. Appointed in 2017, she oversaw programs in Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas, including work on Opportunity Zones and disaster recovery following Hurricane Harvey.
Rep. Van Duyne was the first woman elected Mayor of Irving, serving from 2011 to 2017 after service on the Irving City Council from 2004 to 2010. Her private-sector experience includes business consulting and work with startups, private companies and Fortune 500 corporations.
(B.A., Cornell University)
