Advocacy - Harrisburg Regional Chamber & CREDC

The Chamber & CREDC strives to keep members informed on relevant policy issues. We proactively take action to influence public policy for business growth at local, state and federal levels.

The Harrisburg Regional Chamber & CREDC represents the interests of 900 businesses employing 130,000 people across Cumberland, Dauphin and Perry counties. We determine our legislative priorities through input and feedback from the Harrisburg Regional Chamber membership.

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Legislative Priorities

Advocate for economic development funding and policies in the best interests of the regional business community.

Monitor and support, where appropriate, issues advocated by the Pennsylvania Economic Development Association (PEDA) including, but not limited to: increased funding to existing economic development budget line items, a dedicated funding stream for EDCs to offset administrative costs, and funding for PEDA training initiatives.
Promoting regional economic development collaborations and solutions that support new investment, retention, and expansion.
Supporting state and regional initiatives to increase tourist attraction in the region.

Support and advance collaborative initiatives with community partners to connect education and business to build strong career pathways, promote lifelong learning, and establish a strong workforce in our region. This includes, but is not limited to:

Improving access to, and quality of, curriculums, training programs, and assessments to address the skills gap.
Improving access to high-quality childcare for parents looking to enter/re-enter the workforce.
Improving access to, and the effectiveness of, local and regional workforce development boards.
Evaluating, where appropriate, professional licensure reform and Clean Slate/criminal justice reform proposals that seek to alleviate barriers to entry.
Evaluating federal immigration reform policy through a workforce lens, including language barriers in the workplace.
Increasing the availability of, and access to, affordable and market-rate housing in the region.

Advocate balanced policies that allow competition between energy producers and providers, and ensure that Pennsylvania’s energy supply is sustainable, reliable, affordable, and secure. This includes, but is not limited to:

Promoting environmental and conservation policies that are based on sound science, and that do not place undue or excessive burdens and restrictions on the private sector. Any regulatory reform advocacy should support these goals.
Maintaining access to clean and healthy outdoor recreation spaces as a factor in quality of life and business attraction.

Evaluate and act where appropriate on proposals for regulatory reform at the local, state, and federal levels both regulatory and legislatively. This includes, but is not limited to:

Promoting the streamlining of DEP permitting processes to further the reuse of brownfield sites and contribute to a jobs-growing economy.

Assess, monitor and comment on the implementation of state and federal healthcare policy to help ensure employers/taxpayer costs are controlled and employees receive a high level of quality care. This includes, but is not limited to:

Promoting reforms that stabilize the medical malpractice insurance marketplace and foster stability in the medical community.

Advocate safe, modern, reliable, cost-effective, and community-centered infrastructure solutions in order to grow the economy, increase regional competitiveness, and create jobs. This includes, but is not limited to:

Promoting the equitable funding, development, and implementation of multimodal transportation and infrastructure system that provides for the safe and efficient mobility of products, services, information, and people.
Promoting the modernization of utility infrastructure systems, and relevant regulatory reforms, to provide safe and efficient utilization of electricity, gas, sewer, water, and telecommunications services, especially access to statewide broadband.

Advocate for common sense reform of outdated and unfair regulations that address abuses and provide for an impartial work environment for both employees and employers. This includes, but is not limited to:

Reforms of Pennsylvania’s prevailing wage law, unemployment, and worker compensation systems.
Reforms to the multi-prime bidding requirement in the Pennsylvania Separations Act.
Evaluating any legislation seeking to raise the minimum wage—our position would depend on the specific piece of legislation and its implementation plan. Any increase should not hinder economic growth or disproportionately impact small businesses.

Monitor local and county government issues impacting the business community and Harrisburg Regional Chamber & CREDC members. This includes, but is not limited to:

Advancing the mission of the Coalition for Sustainable Communities in helping solve fiscal issues in Pennsylvania cities, including but not limited to: (1) pensions; (2) binding arbitration; (3) economic development; (4) easier methods of municipal merger and consolidation; and (5) revenue enhancement options following the reform of state mandates and restrictions.

Support and promote tax reform initiatives to stimulate economic growth and increase Pennsylvania’s competitive advantage as well as improve efficiency for local governments. This includes, but is not limited to:

Advocating for the elimination of the cap on Net Operating Losses and the lowering of the Corporate Net Income Tax rate.
Advocating for the extension of business tax reforms contained in the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.

Support and promote efforts to improve the Commonwealth’s tort climate to enhance the state and the region’s economic competitiveness. This includes, but is not limited to:

Elevating awareness of key liability issues and advocate appropriate reforms.

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