Slate of 2022 Regional Advocacy Priorities advance every goal of our region

Our work is wide, yet always focused on building our region, increasing population and GDP, enhancing quality of life and making the QC the place people want to live, expand their careers and grow their families. Our slate of 2022 Regional Advocacy Priorities advances every one of those goals. And during this legislative session, these priorities will consume the conversations we have with federal, state and local policymakers. Each priority was shaped by the one-on-one conversations we’ve had with business and community leaders, on-site visits and business tours, discussions at Chamber events and committee meetings and a survey of members. You spoke, we listened and created a list that directly impacts the growth and strength of our region. The four areas: talent attraction and development, placemaking, fostering a business-friendly environment and COVID-19 recovery, are seamlessly connected. While we advocate on your behalf, we need you at the table, too. Working together, we can create a prosperous region where all can thrive.

Our first Regional Advocacy Priority - talent attraction and development - impacts businesses across the region. We want policymakers to take action that will flip this from an issue of deep concern to a strength; to be a region nationally recognized for its educated and skilled workforce. We are asking policymakers to sufficiently fund PreK–12 and higher education programs; develop new policies that connect people to the training and education they need to secure good-paying jobs and careers; and to expand and incentivize alternative career training pathways which build our workforce and talent pipelines through public/private partnerships, which we know first-hand, work. In partnership with area high schools and businesses, we’ve helped place high school students into apprenticeships programs. Last year, more than 40 students took the first step into a career in the skilled trades, training on-site at partner businesses who eagerly stepped up to mold and build their future workforce. There are more than 80 students who have signed up to start their apprenticeship training this fall. It is proof that partnerships can advance our talent goals.

Times have changed. Talent no longer follows businesses. Instead, businesses follow talent, which is why placemaking is our second Regional Advocacy Priority. Whether it is recent college graduates, established trade and career professionals, or even the semi-retired, we need to draw them here. When policymakers make placemaking a priority and support it through grants and dedicated funding, we can be that vibrant, active, welcoming and supportive community that has the activities, amenities and housing to draw and retain workers. The Chamber has been leading placemaking in downtown Davenport and Bettendorf. The success of those efforts, in partnership with each city, is witnessed in the new development, businesses, residents and visitors who fill those streets. Now, in partnership with Rock Island and downtown property owners, we are reimagining what can be, and actively working to make it a destination with apartments, shops, services, restaurants and parks. Rock Island believes in the power of placemaking, as evident by the $2.5 million commitment to modernize downtown streetscaping. Placemaking benefits our entire region by drawing and retaining the talent we need now, and catches the attention and investment of new businesses. We ask policymakers to recognize and financially support the power of placemaking initiatives. 

We also ask lawmakers to foster a business-friendly environment – our third Regional Advocacy Priority – by supporting government programs, tools and investments that spark economic growth and encourage regional cooperation among our communities. Tax Increment Financing is a funding tool that has sparked transformational projects throughout our region. Historic Tax Credits have allowed developers to transform vacant office buildings, warehouses and schools into workforce housing for young talent, families and retirees who want to live in the QC and actively contribute to our communities. We ask the states to protect and enhance programs that attract new business and encourage business expansion and job growth, such as Iowa’s Manufacturing 4.0 Technology Investment Program. Through this program, businesses have been able to adopt and integrate smart technologies into their existing operations, boosting efficiencies and the bottom line. And we plan to share success stories such as those with Illinois lawmakers, asking them to envision what a similar program could mean for manufacturers in their state.

COVID-19 recovery – our fourth Regional Advocacy Priority - must remain a top priority for elected officials at every level of government to guarantee our regional employers remain viable. As businesses continue their efforts to mitigate the spread, governments must address the unintended consequences that mitigation has on the business community and provide flexible relief and clear guidance on employers’ responsibilities as the pandemic subsides.

“This is just a sampling of what we are trying to accomplish with you and for our region. Your input and feedback shaped the 2022 Regional Advocacy Priorities, and it will take a collective effort to achieve these goals,” said Rhonda Ludwig, the Chamber’s Director, Government Affairs.

The Chamber team has already begun educating policymakers on what businesses in the region need. We need you to continue to engage with us because your voice and involvement is interwoven into our region’s success. On Feb. 11, we will launch our Legislative Event Series. Attend these twice-per-month events and hear directly from policymakers. While in the room with them, tell them about the challenges facing your business as well as solutions. We’ll be activating the Advocacy Action Center so you know what is happening during the legislative session. Please offer your input and learn how, and why, to contact your representatives. Join us on advocacy trips. And we invite you to call us and tell us more about your business needs and challenges so we can get you in front of the right people.

We are a mighty region of 470,973 residents, but really, our work on the 2022 Regional Advocacy Priorities is a grassroots effort. “It takes like-minded people who share a vision for a thriving QC region to come together around these goals, then tap others on the shoulder to join us as an ally, as a resource. We have momentum and it will continue to build,” Ludwig said.