Tucson Metropolitan Chamber Of Commerce: Article 1 -- 2009 a banner year

2009 was a banner year for the Tucson Chamber!
The Tucson Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce has once again ended the year on a high note. Despite the economic situation in which the country, our state and our region found itself for the last twelve months, the Chamber moved ahead, setting positive directions for our community, taking important stands on legislation, collaborating with other business groups, and working to help all businesses, large and small alike. I am proud of all that we accomplished.

Our Governmental Affairs department was busy working to represent our members and other businesses at the state level on such issues as:

Rio Nuevo funding (the Chamber joined forces with the City of Tucson to keep funding from being eliminated);
Non-partisan city elections (SB 1123, sponsored by Senator Jonathan Paton, signed into law by Governor Brewer);
Impact Fee moratorium (collaborated with the Southern Arizona Home Builders Association and signed into law by Governor Brewer);
The medical malpractice reform (formed a coalition with other impacted organizations sponsoring SB 1018 which will raise the burden of proof on lawsuits against emergency room child delivery—considered a huge leap moving toward total reform—signed into law by Governor Brewer);
The Workers Compensation Omnibus Bill (SB 1262 which endeavored to make Workers Compensation more business –friendly, signed into law by Governor Brewer); and,
The Spring Training funding vote (worked with other lobbyists to allow voters of Pima County to vote for funding to save professional baseball spring training and youth/amateur sports, HB 2572 was signed into law by Governor Brewer).

These were just a few of the issues in which this Chamber played a major role for passage at the state level. But let’s not forget our local governmental affairs. In addition to working with the City of Tucson’s City Manager to build a more business-friendly atmosphere, the Chamber was an active participant/leader in initiatives such as:

Partnership in the Sign Code Committee initiative (started with work in Oro Valley which led to the formation of the Tucson Chamber Sign Code Task Force);
The Economic Stimulus Stakeholder group for the City of Tucson (resulting in the deferral of impact fees, saving builders the debt carrying costs);
Efforts to reorganize the City of Tucson Land Use code through the Land Use Committee;
Facilitation of the Development Services Stakeholders group (which has resulted in significant redesign of the development standards);
Advocacy for the Tangerine/I-10 interchange, I-10 improvements from State Route 86 to I-8;
Strong support of the Military Community Relations Committee and Davis Monthan relations; and,
Pima Association of Government Environmental Planning Advisory Committee (Vice-Chair-advocating for reasonable and manageable environmental policies).

Most importantly, Prop. 200—the “Safety First” initiative—had been slated to win handily (with over a 20% margin) until the Tucson Chamber weighed in and took a stand in opposition. In last month’s Chamber News, I addressed this important outcome for the City of Tucson. The Chamber is now, and has always been, a strong supporter of safety in our community. However, a proposition on the ballot that forced a City Charter change—in reality, an unfunded mandate—was just plain bad public policy. By opposing this proposition, the Chamber was able to galvanize a number of other organizations in the community to join us in our fight. Prop 200 won by a 40% margin and we are proud of that record. The City Council in recent days has announced that they may cut police and fire in an effort to balance the budget. The Chamber stands in strong opposition to that decision and will once again marshal our allies to compel the Council to reconsider this action. Given this economy, budget reductions will need to be made, there is no doubt, but police and fire need to be the last agencies on the cut list and the Chamber will continue to stand strong in their defense.

The Business Development department has been hard at work, helping our business community become more involved with the education of our citizens, young and old, to create an expanded pool of future skilled employees. To that end, this department has been involved in or taken leadership positions in the following initiatives, to name just a few:

Helped to found the “Literacy for Life” Coalition (an agency formed to bring all of the non-profit organizations involved in literacy at all ages together for better coordination, cooperation and efficiencies);
Developed the “Skilled Employee Resource Committee” (a subcommittee of the Workforce Investment Board chaired by Chamber staff, designed to help highly skilled job seekers find suitable employment);
Represented the “Business-Management Administrative Services" segment of Continuing Education on the JTED Advisory Board;
Organized and conducted the eighth annual State of Education and second annual Education Expo attended by over 350 members/non-members, the proceeds of which funded six scholarships for deserving high school students in the community;
Launched Bid Source in Southern Arizona (in partnership with the Phoenix Chamber, helping our members successfully apply for important government bid opportunities); and,
Expanded the communications efforts at the Chamber, adding the “Happenings” newsletter and social media connections for the Chamber.

As usual, the Chamber provided multiple opportunities for networking and member socialization at a variety of programs and events. We revamped and reintroduced “Good Morning Tucson” breakfasts this year and continued with the ever popular “Power Networking Lunches” and “Business After Hours” mixers. Adding to these great programs, the Chamber offered several luncheons including the “State of the State”, the “State of the City”, “National Issues Forum”, and the “State of Education”. In total, the Chamber held over 30 different events/programs for its members over the year—almost three per month on average!

Once again, your Chamber of Commerce has been working hard to help you and your business. As I said at the beginning of this article, I am very proud of all of our accomplishments.

But there’s always room for improvement—at least in our opinion. We are constantly looking for ways to make this Chamber more relevant, more helpful, and more proactive. We strive to take the Tucson Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce to the next level of excellence.

To that end, we need your input. If you have comments—good or bad—that you’d like to share with me or my management team, please take a moment to send an email, write a letter or make a phone call. All of our contact information is on our website. Please be sure to identify yourself in your comments to us. Anonymous missives will not be considered relevant or worthy of consideration. All others will receive our utmost attention. I cannot guarantee that the Chamber will act on all suggestions that we receive. Some ideas may not be feasible (legally in Tucson or financially for the Chamber), and some may not be timely but perhaps doable at a later time. However, some of your ideas might just be the ticket to moving the Chamber to that next level. I promise to review your letters or comments with an open mind, eager to make the Tucson Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce the best that it can be!