Director of Public Policy

Ownwell • Austin, TX

6h

About The Position

We’re hiring a strategic Director of Public Policy to design and deliver our multi‑state legislative and regulatory agenda. You’ll secure policy wins that expand our serviceable market, improve fairness and transparency in property taxation, and protect homeowners. You are equal parts policy entrepreneur, coalition builder, and execution athlete. Primary mandate: offense (expand TAM) and defense (mitigate adverse bills); secondary: administrative/regulatory wins and data transparency.

Requirements

• 8–15+ years in state‑level public policy/government relations with tangible wins across multiple states.
• Mastery of legislative and administrative process; comfortable drafting, negotiating, and testifying.
• Built/led coalitions that combine grassroots homeowner stories with rigorous policy analysis.
• Operated in lean, high‑velocity environments (e.g. high‑growth company, association, or firm). Startup mindset: scrappy, ethical, persistent.

Nice To Haves

• Experience in tax policy, consumer protection, or state/local administrative law
• J.D.
• prior oversight of PAC or issue advocacy.

Responsibilities

• Set the strategy
• Develop a 2–3 year legislative and regulatory roadmap that expands market access and improves homeowner outcomes across current states and new priority states identified through discovery.
• Prioritize high‑leverage levers: statutes, rules, attorney general opinions, comptroller guidance, appraisal district/ARB procedures, data access, and pilots.
• Define the policy thesis and narrative that resonates with legislators, regulators, and homeowner groups.
• Deliver wins
• Draft, sponsor, and shepherd priority bills; craft amendments; manage vote paths and whip counts.
• Drive rulemakings and administrative petitions; file comments; negotiate guidance and MOUs that unlock operational improvements (e.g., standardized evidence exchange, appeal timelines, digital access).
• Coordinate testimony, fact sheets, economic impact briefs, and homeowner stories with Comms/Marketing.
• Build coalitions & relationships
• Convene homeowner, taxpayer, REALTOR®, landlord, and consumer advocacy groups; partner with chambers, think tanks, and local leaders to create durable alliances.
• Maintain trusted relationships with legislative offices, state agencies (e.g., Comptrollers, Departments of Revenue), appraisal districts, and ARBs.
• Own and direct external partners: select, brief, and manage state lobbyists and policy consultancies; drive accountability and ROI.
• Operate with excellence
• Stand up compliant, multi‑state lobbying operations: registrations, reporting, gift/ethics rules, pay‑to‑play, procurement/contingency‑fee constraints, internal policies and training.
• Build the policy operating system: bill tracker, scorecards, vote maps, coalition CRM, calendar of sessions and rulemakings, and a monthly dashboard.
• Partner with Legal and Exec to manage risk, issue escalation, and scenario planning.
• Advocacy/PAC (as needed): scope and (if warranted) stand up a compliant PAC/issue‑advocacy program to support legislative outcomes.

Benefits

• Entrepreneurial culture. Own your career; we are here to support you in the journey.
• Access to First Round Network to build your community outside of Ownwell.
• Flexible PTO. We believe in giving you the flexibility to own your time off. In addition to flexible time off, you will get 11 company holidays. We close the company operations for the last week of the year to help the team recharge and reset.
• Competitive health benefits. We care for you and your family’s health, as reflected in our benefits coverage.
• Learning support through a $1,000 stipend per year to enable investing in your individual learning needs.
• Supporting parental journey. We offer up to 16 weeks of fully paid parental and bonding leave to support your journey as a new parent.
• Equity participation. Bring a founder’s mindset to grow and scale us.
• Complimentary real estate and tax consulting licensing and renewal

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Director
• Education Level: No Education Listed
• Number of Employees: 51-100 employees