Advocacy / State of the City

Advocacy Strengthening Longview by Advocating for Local Business

The Chamber of Commerce is a business organization representing the interests of more than 1100 businesses of all sizes, sectors, and regions, and 45,000 hard-working Texans. Our members range from mom-and-pop shops and local chambers to leading industry associations and large corporations. They all share one thing—they count on the Chamber to be their voice.

The Chamber has and continues to be the driving force behind the growth in Longview. This year, 2020, brought tremendous challenges for business. As Texas and the world were placed on hold to rein in the spread of a virus, the Chamber quickly set up webinars addressing those pain points businesses were already experiencing and to consider the questions of that impact long term. In partnerships with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the SBDC, recognized legal attorneys, and agencies, your Chamber processed information and discussions, and advocated on your behalf on relief and assistance legislation. As a result,

1822 PPP loans were awarded to 271 businesses in Longview for a total of $188,476,107, and the average loan amount of

$103,444

(DATA PROVIDED BY THE SBDC OF NORTH TEXAS).

WE’RE OPEN STONGVIEW!

Upon the Governor’s scheduled re-opening of Texas businesses in late April and May, [ BLOG POST ] the Chamber partnered with SignPro to create and distribute “We’re Open” signs to area businesses to help stir the business community and consumers with information that we could open and operate businesses in a safe manner to protect people. A series of photographs were taken to showcase how our businesses were adjusting to the new constraints and keeping people safe, which then translated into an ad campaign. Global Graphics designed t-shirts and yard signs for “StrongView,” an initiative to visually reinforce the strength of our trade area and its people. The Longview Chamber partnered with the U.S. Chamber to launch a national initiative on Inequality of opportunity [ READ HERE ]. Inspired by its mission to lead people and lead prosperity, the Chamber partnered in a national townhall meeting. ”The Longview Chamber, a nationally recognized 5-Star Chamber, is proud to help the U.S. Chamber of Commerce fully leverage state and national relationships by continuing this dialogue across industry sectors,” stated President and CEO, Kelly Hall, of the Longview Chamber. “It is up to us as individuals to lead conversations to gain clarity and understanding on how to break unhealthy cycles of inequality.”

The Chamber provided testimony for a virtual Washington D.C. presentation in which current issues that companies are facing were used as testimony in support of bills……

The Chamber published an Op Ed to support business Payroll Protection Program (PPP) Reform; Workforce Development, Business Liability Protection, and Local Aid (State & Local Municipalities financial support) [ READ HERE ] To educate our members on current policy issues, the Chamber provided education opportunities on the critical issues impacting business: Energy, Transportation, Economic Growth, Cyber Security, and Immigration. Since the D.C. Fly In trip was rescheduled to March 2021, a virtual meeting with policy experts from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce was held to begin that process. [ VIEW HERE ]

Further working together on a regional basis for a stronger representation in Austin, Capitol Connect is becoming an annual regional event whereby our state elected officials are providing updates on legislation and committee involvement. This regional group has expanded to include Kilgore, Longview, Lindale, Tyler, and now Gladewater. This is the representation for the East Texas Coalition which next travels to Austin in March 2021.

Meanwhile, the Chamber’s Public Policy committee reviewed and vetted the 13 public policies for the Chamber in readiness for visits to D.C. and Austin.

State of the City

Wednesday - November 11, 2020

Virtual Event

3:00 - 4:00 pm DR. ANDY MACK City of Longview Mayor

SPONSORED BY

GOLD SPONSORS:

AAON Coil Products Inc Komatsu VeraBank

SILVER SPONSORS:

Austin Bank Barksdale Federal Credit Union Henry & Peters PC

Fiber Driven. People Powered.

Questions? Call Suzanne Brown at 903.237.4003 | sbrown@longviewtx.com

cont. from page 6 Another regional effort was the Keep Texas Moving joint press conference announcement with the Tyler Chamber of Commerce. The announcement highlighted efforts to improve development time of roadway projects, save money by investing in Texas infrastructure, addressing future growth and economic opportunity with improved funding solutions, fixing our roads, and creating jobs!

As we move into 2021, your Chamber is rolling out a new Call to Action program, One Click Politics. This will provide grass roots efforts and campaigns to bring members together to rally behind support or opposition of legislation under consideration.

As a strong supporter and member of the Mayor’s task force to complete the 2020 Census, your Chamber set up messaging and tool kits to increase awareness and educate on the importance and safety of the census. [ READ HERE ] After national deliberation and changes of deadlines, the census experienced a 99% response rate. With the pandemic, all local elections were pushed forward to coincide with the national presidential election. GOTV efforts included education articles, social media blitzes, and inclusion in the virtual Business After Hours and EAST TEXAS COALITION - February 22-23, 2021 [ REGISTER HERE ]

& TEXAS ENERGY DAY - February 24, 2021 __________

The Chamber travels to Austin as an East Texas Region, meeting faceto-face with our elected officials on the issues that matter most to your business. The East Texas Coalition is made up of Chambers of Commerce from Smith and Gregg Counties. In order to strengthen the regional voice, Longview and Tyler embarked on a joint effort 7 years ago to combine their legislative trips to Austin. This partnership has proven to be extremely successful in positioning our combined legislative priorities. This program provides participants the opportunity to hear from a variety of state agency leaders on key topics such as water, transportation, and air quality, with an allotted time for private meetings. Relationships are built with elected officials as well as face-to-face meetings via member travel to Austin. The Legislative Reception includes State Representatives and Senators as well as over 100 state agencies commissioners and key staff, providing an opportunity to showcase East Texas’s regional efforts and build relationships between these entities. Attendees are encouraged to stay over on February 24 to attend Texas Energy Day, a legislative day at the Capitol.

LONGVIEW Wake Up Longview broadcasting. Tools and resources were shared with WASHINGTON D.C. FLY-IN - March 9-12, 2021 [ __________ REGISTER HERE ] employers and citizens to make their voice heard! [ READ HERE ] And The Chamber travels to Washington D.C., meeting face-to-face with our the City of Longview District 3 candidates took part in a forum to ensure elected officials on the issues that matter most to your business. This citizens heard the views of these three passionate and caring individuals who care about their district. [ VIEW HERE ] program provides participants the opportunity to hear from a variety of federal agency leaders on key topics such as water, transportation, and air quality, with an allotted time for meetings with federal elected officials. A Although we pushed forward to help meet the needs of area businesses in Virtual meeting to review policy issues with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce a pandemic, the Chamber does not rest and the work is not finished. Your was held October 6, 2020, and the fly-in scheduled March 9-12, 2021.Chamber moves forward with a drive toward greater excellence in serving the business community. We know there will be challenges ahead. There BRIEFING SPONSORS: R. Manley Enterprises | Linebarger Goggan Blair & Sampson LLP will always be challenges, no matter what form they take. Your Chamber is Joyce Crane here to take them on. SUPPORTING SPONSOR: Conterra Networks Back to What’s Inside? R.E.A.C.H . REPORT 2020 7