Chamber Travels to Iowa Capitol

The Quad Cities Chamber traveled in force to the Iowa Capitol this week with more than 20 business and community leaders from across the region. During the trip, members met with House and Senate leaders to promote our region's pro-growth policies and position the Quad Cities as a great place to do business. 

“As the voice of the Quad Cities business community, it’s imperative that we show up and share the needs of our region with policymakers. We were proud to be joined by John Deere, Arconic, Tri-City Electric, and municipal partners in Davenport and Bettendorf to speak with a united voice," said Ryan Sempf, Executive Director of Government Affairs for the Quad Cities Chamber.

The agenda included promoting the Major Economic Growth Attraction (MEGA) program. If passed into law, it will help incentivize generationally impactful investment in Iowa. Business leaders also supported the acceleration of the 2022 tax cut package and advocated for maintaining and protecting existing economic development incentives. These incentives have led to more than a billion dollars in investment in the Iowa Quad Cities over the past 10 years.

In addition to tax and regulation, business leaders also focused on talent attraction and development.

“State and local incentives help to close the financial gap and get projects over the finish line. To create a pro-business, pro-growth climate we need both a competitive tax rate and competitive incentives,” said Tom Vonderhaar, Tri-City Electric.  

Destination Iowa was a transformational program when it was first introduced and will lead to tens of millions of dollars in investment in the Davenport riverfront alone. Business and community leaders called for continued investment in the program which was originally funded by the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA).

“Iowa is the only state not to have doubled its population since the early 1900s," said Mara Downing, Deere & Company, and Chamber Board Chair. "Talent attraction and development is a top priority in unlocking the growth potential of the region. We’re proud to stand with the Chamber and support investments in quality of place and education.”

Leaders also promoted the need to invest in education, particularly by increasing general aid to our community colleges and investing in tuition support for private, 4-year institutions like St. Ambrose University.

Read the Chamber's Iowa Legislative Agenda.

The Chamber looks forward to traveling to Springfield, IL and Washington D.C. in March to continue meetings with state and federal legislators. Stay up to date on legislation with our bill tracker.