| AMHERST CHAMBER OF COMMERCE TO UNVEIL 2009 LEGISLATIVE AGENDA AT EVENT MAY 28TH |
| Never before has Public Policy been more important than in the current economic environment. However, with most businesses devoted to keeping their doors open, they don't have the time to focus on politics. Additionally, we have become so cynical about our ability to change the political status quo that many of our members have just given up their involvement. The Amherst Chamber of Commerce wants to make it easier for you to be informed and to step up and have your voice heard. We accomplish this through a process that has served us well. It starts with our Community Affairs Council. The council members review issues that have a commonality with our membership. The next step is a realistic assessment relative to the ability of the Chamber to drive movement on the issue. Further, we determine whether the issue is something that requires constant oversight or is something that will be an ongoing part of our advocacy and has a cyclical movement pattern. For example, we consistently advocate for changes in the Scaffold Law which increases consumer costs for all types of building improvements and construction. While the issue is always of concern and we want Albany and our local delegation to be aware of our position, the issue heats up during certain times in the NYS Legislative session. By identifying the issue in our Legislative Agenda, we have the ability to be proactive and mobilize action when the issue comes to the floor, without going back to our membership for approval. Adoption by our membership of our Legislative Agenda affords us this flexibility on multiple issues. Therefore, we ask you to go to click here to familiarize yourself with the document. Please email me if you would like additional information on any specific agenda item or do not agree with our position. Otherwise, we assume our membership is in favor of our agenda and we will ratify it and distribute to the public and our public officials.
You will notice that our agenda is much more concise this year than in the past. That is because while we have flushed out local issues at the town level, we have focused on issues that impact economic development and wealth creation. At the state and federal level, we are collaborating with the Buffalo Niagara Partnership, the organization that is taking the lead in driving these issues. To truly have an impact on issues at these levels, we must act as a region and have a united voice. Adding our 2,000+ members to the Partnership 2000+ membership really gives us some muscle. Unshackle Upstate, a regional agenda for the state, is being partially underwritten by the BNP and deserves our support. Working together, we can hope to accomplish much more than we could do autonomously.
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Centerpointe Corporate Park 
350 Essjay Road, Suite 200 Williamsville, New York 14221
Phone: (716) 632-6905 Fax: (716) 632-0548
350 Essjay Road, Suite 200 Williamsville, New York 14221Phone: (716) 632-6905
Fax: (716) 632-0548
