Ana Cruz Managing Partner Tampa Bay Ballard Partners
Why should companies rely on lobbying services? Everybody needs a lobbyist. Some people think that lobbyists only protect special interests or have a negative connotation but lobbyists are simply advocates. For example, if you or your company were at risk of being over-regulated or under-regulated, unfairly causing harm to you or your company, you would most likely file a lawsuit to stop that action or litigate the issue, and you are not doing that without a lawyer. The same applies for us. Lobbyists are advocates for their clients to ensure their values and points of view are well represented throughout the legislative process. We intricately understand the legislative process largely because we’ve worked in government before going to the private sector. It is also critical to understand what the priorities are for legislative leadership and the Executive Branch, as that knowledge will help us maneuver our clients through the halls of the state capital or Congress. Passing a bill is not easy, and oftentimes takes a few years to lay the groundwork and the necessary support, but having the right team who can effectively advocate on your behalf is critical. What issues are on your radar? Certainly, the federal infrastructure bill. We represent quite a few clients in the infrastructure space including the American Road and Transportation Builders Association, construction companies and engineering firms. Cities and counties will benefit greatly from this infrastructure bill that will help fund projects to repair aging infrastructure and facilitate upgrades in transportation, utilities, broadband, housing and job training programs. We help our clients understand the needs of their specific communities, building bridges with small and minority-owned businesses and teaming up on small and large projects and contracts. We also know that equity, diversity and inclusion are paramount to public policy in the new administration, but also incredibly important to our minority small-business owners, especially in Hillsborough County where I call home. 16
| Invest: Tampa Bay 2021 | ECONOMY
( ) Economic performance The Tampa Bay area is no longer just about sandy beaches and dynamic nightlife. Now, the region boasts a variety of industries bolstering its revenues, ranging from finance and insurance and IT to healthcare, construction and defense. The diversity has helped the Tampa MSA become one of the Top 25 metro areas in the country in terms of Gross Metropolitan Product (GMP), coming in at No.24 with GMP valued at $156.67 billion, according to Stastita forecasts for 2020. The New York-Newark-New Jersey MSA tops the list with $1.67 trillion GMP. Tampa Bay is also a financial hub, with almost one in four business and information services firms having offices in the city. Some notable financial institutions in Tampa include Bank of America, JP Morgan Chase,
A third of Florida’s entire population lives within a two-hour drive of the City of Tampa.
