Chamber Legislative Agenda
Government is one of the biggest influences on business. The Pembroke Park/West Park Chamber of Commerce is fighting for your business and looking out for your bottom line. We are your eyes and ears at City Hall, the County, the State Capitol and in Washington, D.C. We listen to your concerns and convey your message in the political arena, taking action on legislative issues and regulations that impact our economy.
The Chamber understands that strong communities are the result of strong business engagement. We will continue to build strong relationships with our community partners and our legislators in building a better Broward County and a better Florida. We can achieve our goals through our legislative process which includes developing a business driven agenda, hosting a variety of legislative events, Get-out-the-Vote campaigns, and educating our members on the impact of current issues. Our members' input is imperative in executing each phase. During our monthly Government & Legislative Affairs Committee meeting, local, state and/or federal issues are discussed, along with updates on topics such as current and pending legislation, regulations, transportation, etc.
Objectives of Chamber Advocacy:
Our Chamber is unique in our area in that we have a partnership with the US Chamber of Commerce for our members.
The Pembroke Park/West Park Chamber of Commerce’s partnership with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce offers an array of resources for small business members in the community and unifies the voice of small businesses throughout the country. Through this partnership, small business members of our chamber receive a U.S. Chamber membership at no additional cost.
The current political environment poses new challenges to the business community. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce works with small businesses in support of an agenda that fosters economic growth, business stability, shareholder security, and consumer protection. Through the U.S. Chamber’s partnership with our Chamber, our members are part of the nation’s largest grassroots advocacy network. The U.S. Chamber’s ever-growing coalition rallies the voices of small businesses throughout the nation to be heard on Capitol Hill.
The Chamber understands that strong communities are the result of strong business engagement. We will continue to build strong relationships with our community partners and our legislators in building a better Broward County and a better Florida. We can achieve our goals through our legislative process which includes developing a business driven agenda, hosting a variety of legislative events, Get-out-the-Vote campaigns, and educating our members on the impact of current issues. Our members' input is imperative in executing each phase. During our monthly Government & Legislative Affairs Committee meeting, local, state and/or federal issues are discussed, along with updates on topics such as current and pending legislation, regulations, transportation, etc.
Objectives of Chamber Advocacy:
- Garner input from chamber members so we may effectively advocate on their behalf.
- Communicate through all possible mediums those issues that may affect the business community.
- Monitor and work with local and state government agencies and elected officials on issues affecting the business community.
Our Chamber is unique in our area in that we have a partnership with the US Chamber of Commerce for our members.
The Pembroke Park/West Park Chamber of Commerce’s partnership with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce offers an array of resources for small business members in the community and unifies the voice of small businesses throughout the country. Through this partnership, small business members of our chamber receive a U.S. Chamber membership at no additional cost.
The current political environment poses new challenges to the business community. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce works with small businesses in support of an agenda that fosters economic growth, business stability, shareholder security, and consumer protection. Through the U.S. Chamber’s partnership with our Chamber, our members are part of the nation’s largest grassroots advocacy network. The U.S. Chamber’s ever-growing coalition rallies the voices of small businesses throughout the nation to be heard on Capitol Hill.
Economic Development
Economic development initiatives are an essential component of a healthy business environment. The Chamber supports legislative policies and actions that provide businesses of all sizes the tools and talent they need to increase their competitiveness and stimulate growth while continuing to attract new industries to our region.
- Creating collaborative relationships with our federal, state, and local representatives and agencies to maximize access to programs and incentives necessary to build economic development
- Support efforts to retain and grow existing businesses through training opportunities, professional development, and access to capital growth programs
- Development and support broader initiatives to market and brand the South Broward region and the State of Florida
- Improving Florida’s permitting and regulatory systems to help improve competitiveness, by eliminating outdated, ineffective, or disadvantageous regulations
- Supporting programs such as Florida’s Small Business Development Network, which provides guidance to start-ups and first stage businesses
- Supporting the adoption of trade agreements with other nations that add jobs for the region
- Supporting the ongoing review of the taxation system to maintain a competitive edge and forward-thinking position that meets the needs of the State and the local businesses
- Tort reform that would help lower the costs of doing business by reducing the amount of money businesses need to spend on litigation, settlements, and insurance premiums, which can create a more stable and predictable legal environment that encourages business growth
Workforce Development
The Chamber encourages the development of a strong competitive workforce. This includes supporting a strong K-12, community college, 4-year college and vocational training educational systems.
EDUCATION
EDUCATION
- Supporting safe learning environments by requiring the funding of SRO’s for all public and charter schools at the county or state level for safer schools for our children
- Supporting initiatives that will help to increase early childhood education and graduation rates, thus providing a more skilled workforce for business and industry in our region
- Supporting initiatives that will help to increase the number of individuals entering and completing post-secondary training or education
- Legislation that provides stable, equitable and adequate K-12 funding for both our public and charter schools
- Continuing to support assessment and accountability systems at all levels of Florida’s education system will help ensure a globally competitive talent pipeline
- Supporting a consistent federal policy for immigration that avoids undue burden to Florida’s employers and doesn’t harm the economy
- Supporting policies for young undocumented immigrants who were brought into the country as children to have protection from deportation and an opportunity to obtain legal status and employment
- Opposing costly, ineffective, and redundant employer mandates to focus on creating a positive labor environment
- Supporting a tax structure that encourages job growth
- Support the acceptance and review of skilled and professional trades licenses across state lines, removing the barrier of retesting and schooling to recruit talent
- Supporting legislation that removes barriers to occupational licensing for individuals with criminal records, which is a requirement for nearly 30 percent of jobs in Florida, and supporting the adoption of fair-chance policies
Infrastructure
The Chamber will support efforts to strengthen our community’s infrastructure. This will enhance our ability to attract and retain quality businesses, which will lead to improved job opportunities, wages, and quality of life in the southwest Broward region. Recognizing the importance of a quality, economical transportation system is vital to business, including airports, rail systems, highways, and publicly-accessible mass transit. The Chamber will support efforts to maintain and improve transportation into, out of, and within the area.
- Broaden the Base of Transportation revenue and consider recommendations made by the Broward Metropolitan Transportation Organization commission including reasonable user fee increases, exploring innovative new funding mechanisms, adequate funding of local roads and reduced reliance on debt
- Expand Transportation Infrastructure, focus scarce resources on needed roadway capacity expansion projects to accommodate the growing transportation needs of our area
- The Chamber supports North Perry Municipal Airport in economic development growth that meets the needs of the area
- Supporting legislation to enhance affordable housing development and reduce the cost of property insurance
Tourism
Tourism is important to Broward County as a whole, and has a $14 billion economic impact annually and supports over 180,000 jobs in the area. The tourism industry in Broward County generates significant tax revenue for the local government. The taxes collected from tourism-related activities help fund essential services such as public safety, education, and infrastructure. Tourism also helps to promote the county's attractions and amenities, which in turn can help attract new residents, businesses, and investors to the area.
- Support efforts for funding beach renourishment including reasonable use of bed taxes and exploring innovative new funding mechanisms, and support requests for state funding to supplement local and federal Broward County Beach renourishment funds. Beaches play a vital role for our residents in the area of entertainment and add to our quality of life. The Chamber views our beaches as an asset to our economic strength and supports efforts in keeping the beaches of Broward County viable for use by all residents and visitors to the area
- Local government and state investment in the promotion of facilities within local communities to attract tourists to stay, eat and enjoy the general area
- Support formal bids for major sporting and cultural events, such as the Super Bowl and Formula 1 racing, to come to our general area for the increased economic impact for our community
