Key Issues
As the voice of Tampa's business community, the Tampa Bay Chamber is at any given time engaged on a number of public policy fronts. Volunteer leadership and staff are actively participating in dialogue with elected officials to advocate on behalf of the Tampa Bay business community.
Issues are either identified by Public Policy Staff, Members, or Committees of the Chamber. Positions are developed by gathering available information regarding an issue, and then presenting the pro and con perspectives to the Policy Council for discussion and recommendation of a position. The recommended position is presented to the executive committee and ultimately to the Board of Directors for approval.
Guiding Principle
Economic development and business thrive where regional collaboration is strong, growth benefits the quality of life for businesses and residents, regulatory and tax burdens are reasonable, right-to-work laws that protect our citizens remain in place, and wages are at market rate.
| Key | |
|---|---|
| F | Federal |
| S | State |
| $ | State Funding Priority |
| L | Local |
| The Chamber Supports | Region |
|---|---|
| Coming together to address environmental challenges and clean energy transition with practical, affordable, flexible, predictable, and durable policies. | F | S | L |
| Engaging and empowering women, veteran-led and minority owned businesses. | F | S | L |
| Reinstatement of the full and immediate deductibility of research and experimentation costs in Section 174 of tax code. | F | S | L |
| Encouraging Congress and White House administration to preserve and expand Visa Waiver. | F |
| Strongly encourage the U.S. Department of Commerce to have the Census Bureau return to gathering data about unincorporated sole proprietors. This information is vital to track minority businesses. | F |
| Policies that support the recruitment and retention of high-wage jobs. | S | L |
| Pro-business legislative initiatives to attract new business to Tampa Bay. | S | L |
| Legislation that strengthens Florida’s local governments & economic development. | S |
| Florida Job Growth Grant Fund as an economic driver. | S |
| A robust, private property insurance market and reduction in the burden of Citizen’s Insurance policy count. | S |
| Phased initiatives to reduce the tax burden on commercial real estate leases. | S |
| Sustained support for tourism via Visit Florida. | $ |
| Innovation Grants for company relocation or expansion to be used for office space on a collegiate/university campus, and research with professors applicable to business. | $ |
| Restoring arts and culture matching grants recommended by the Florida Department of State’s Division of Arts and Culture. | $ |
| Funding for continued development, enhancements and access to regional cultural assets and the Cultural Arts District. | L |
| Local municipalities undertaking feasibility studies to determine if additional property insurance discounts are possible. | L |
Guiding Principle
The Tampa Bay Chamber supports policies and practices that promote access to economic opportunities and inclusive growth from which everyone can contribute and benefit. Economic inclusion drives business competitiveness and job creation ensuring a workforce representative of our community.
| Key | |
|---|---|
| F | Federal |
| S | State |
| $ | State Funding Priority |
| L | Local |
| The Chamber Supports | Region |
|---|---|
| Advocating for policies that advance corporate culture in business and leads efforts to remove barriers standing between workers and opportunity. | F | S | L |
| Promoting diversity across all levels of business, supporting minority-owned enterprises and entrepreneurs, making the business case for closing the racial equity gap and streamlining the process of becoming a certified minority-owned enterprise. | F | S | L |
| Ensuring equal opportunity to career paths that lead to jobs and workforce initiatives that create a more equitable talent marketplace and strengthen the American economy. | F | S | L |
| Regional workforce development initiatives that build diverse talent and are inclusive of traditionally disenfranchised populations. | S | L |
Guiding Principle
The Tampa Bay Chamber supports increasing access to quality, affordable health care for all Floridians, and legislation that gives our healthcare providers the infrastructure and regulatory environment needed to serve our community best.
| Key | |
|---|---|
| F | Federal |
| S | State |
| $ | State Funding Priority |
| L | Local |
| The Chamber Supports | Region |
|---|---|
| Support hospital-based outpatient departments (HOPDs) but oppose site neutral payment cut policies that target them. | F |
| Equitable allocation of the Opioid Settlement Dollars to benefit our region. | L |
| Permanent funding of the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline call centers. | S | $ |
| Collaborate with government, industry, and the behavioral health community to fully implement the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act and extend parity across all types of insurance to include Medicaid, Medicare, Tricare and commercial payers. | F |
Guiding Principle
The Tampa Bay Chamber enjoys a close working relationship with our Armed Forces and the defense industry that supports them. We understand the importance of supporting our military personnel, their families who serve our country, and those who do business with the military and call our region home. As a Great American Defense Community, we will continue supporting policies and investments that strengthen Tampa Bay's defense community/industry.
| Key | |
|---|---|
| F | Federal |
| S | State |
| $ | State Funding Priority |
| L | Local |
| The Chamber Supports | Region |
|---|---|
| Adequate transportation options for Military families in the region, including optimization of circulator routes for high-density military populations in East/South Hillsborough County. | F | S | L |
| Opportunities that support veterans and military spouses seeking gainful employment and pathways to entrepreneurship. | F | S | L |
| Economic growth opportunities that attract and grow the defense contractor community. | F | S | L |
| Amending the IRS Code by expanding the Work Opportunity Tax Credit (WOTC) to include military spouses as part of its benefitted groups. | F |
| Investment in infrastructure, housing and childcare that supports military family readiness, including fully funding the Department of Defense Community Infrastructure Program (DCIP). | F |
| Positioning MacDill Air Force Base as the preferred installation for new missions, as they become available and as appropriate. | F |
| The President’s Pay Agent reevaluating the methodology used to evaluate the Tampa Bay MSA to determine how the region qualifies for locality pay. | F |
| Support for child care facilities in proximity to MacDill Air Force Base and that provide reasonable access for military families. | F | S | L | $ |
| An increased pay raise for junior enlisted service members in addition to the annual raise for all service members. | F |
| Amend existing state anti-discrimination statutes to explicitly include "military status" as a protected category and clearly define protections to include service members, veterans, their families, caregivers, and survivors. | S |
Guiding Principle
The Tampa Bay Chamber believes that access to transportation is inextricably linked to sound economic development and enhanced quality of life. Sufficient multi-modal transportation funding is needed to implement a robust and connected transportation network in Tampa Bay. We will work diligently to compel our elected officials to support policies that fund innovative projects for roadways and transit systems that are critical to the infrastructure needs of our growing community.
| Key | |
|---|---|
| F | Federal |
| S | State |
| $ | State Funding Priority |
| L | Local |
| The Chamber Supports | Region |
|---|---|
| Policies that encourage innovative transit alternatives and mobility options. | F | S | L |
| Investments in our transportation infrastructure (airport, highways, port) to recover diminishing gas tax and other transportation revenues. | F | $ |
| Reauthorization of the Federal Aviation Administration. | F |
| Extending Brightline to Tampa Bay by preserving the sufficient right of way along I-4 between Tampa and Orlando for its corridor, with connection to Tampa International Airport and the Tampa Bay region. | S | L |
| Support for a regional Metropolitan Planning Organization that presents a collaborative priority list of projects for federal and state dollars. | L |
| Expanding deepwater access and improving the infrastructure at Port Tampa Bay to support the transport of various types of cargo into and out of the Tampa Bay region, including containers, autos, cruise, energy, phosphate, construction aggregate, and other materials. | F | S | L |
| Protecting the high-wage, blue-collar jobs created by the maritime industry, which contribute to the significant economic impact of the Port in our region. | F | S | L |
Guiding Principle
The Tampa Bay Chamber supports policies and innovative solutions that strengthen workforce development, education, and supportive access to transportation and housing. Through robust partnerships, the Chamber will advocate for adequate resources to help attract, develop, and retain talent in Tampa Bay. Plans must be in place today to train and employ the workforce of tomorrow.
| Key | |
|---|---|
| F | Federal |
| S | State |
| $ | State Funding Priority |
| L | Local |
| The Chamber Supports | Region |
|---|---|
| Trade and apprenticeship programs and experiential training offerings with clear pathways for development and approval. | F | S | L |
| Pursuing available government support for workforce development and education programs. | F | S | L |
| Support for affordable access to technology and reliable internet for students. | F | S | L |
| Policies and initiatives aimed at addressing the affordability of childcare. | F | S | L |
| Expand accessibility of Pell Grants for students pursuing short-term certifications. | F |
| Creating pathways for non-violent ex-offenders to reenter the workforce and become productive, self-sufficient citizens. | S | L |
| STEAM education programs, with an emphasis on starting in middle school, to strengthen equitable access to high-quality workforce-related skill sets. | S | L |
| Efforts to fund VPK students from half-day to full-day, providing a multi-year phased approach, which also seeks to prioritize students who require additional support. | S | L |
| The funding and adoption of comprehensive arts curriculum as a driver of workforce readiness. | S | L |
| Flexibility to implement the instructional requirements related to mental health education, substance abuse education, Youth Mental Health First Aid, and human trafficking education. | S |
| Including industry certification and skills training in school and district grade calculations as an additional student success measure. | S |
| Removal of punitive laws that suspend driver’s licenses for non-payment of civil fines. | S |
| Legislation that authorizes public schools to offer coding as a second language and colleges/universities to accept coding as a foreign language credit. | S |
| Expansion of funding for Community Partnership Schools, which are a priority in vulnerable communities. | $ |
| Policies that enhance job flexibility for parents with open cases in the child welfare system of care. | S |
| Increased K-12 funding of schools. | $ |
| Targeted plans that create a pipeline of skilled talent to support and sustain Tampa Bay’s ongoing economic development activities. | L |
| Expansion of the Behavioral Health Teaching Hospitals. | $ |
Workforce Housing
Guiding Principle
Developing a sustainable inventory of workforce housing near centers of commerce and transit corridors is vital to the continued growth and success of Tampa Bay’s business economy. Increasing the inventory of attainable housing for working families is essential to our region’s ability to attract and retain talent, improve quality of life, and achieve the Tampa Bay region’s full potential.
| Key | |
|---|---|
| F | Federal |
| S | State |
| $ | State Funding Priority |
| L | Local |
| The Chamber Supports | Region |
|---|---|
| Attainable housing that improves quality of life and ensures a vibrant, thriving community. | F | S | L |
| Policies and budget prioritization that facilitate development and access to workforce housing. | F | S | L |
| Utilization of available funding to increase attainable housing inventory. | S | L |
| Waivers to activate irregular-sized parcels for affordable and workforce housing. | S | L |
| Legislation the prevents diverting the Sadowski Housing Trust Fund (state fund) | S |
| Amendments to City of Tampa and Hillsborough County Land Development Codes and Comprehensive Plans that incentivize development of workforce housing. | L |
| Clarity in the land use code to encourage transit-oriented development. | L |
| Community Land Trust (CLT) creation to keep workforce housing in perpetuity. | L |
| Incentives for converting existing priorities to workforce housing, including but not limited to the utilization of opportunity zones. | L |
| Density bonuses and the removal of parking minimums for developers building workforce housing. | L |
| Easing the process for workforce housing developers to research City and County resources to assess project feasibility. | L |
Events
An overview of our Policy & Advocacy events.
Candidate Interviews
Watch our interviews with local, state and federal candidates for the upcoming elections.
Committees & Councils
The functions of our Policy Advisory Committee, Policy Council and Transportation Council.
Key Issues
Or legislative agenda and policy initiatives.
Key Votes
See how your State legislators voted and how the bills align with the Chamber's Vision.
Helpful Links
Useful links to our local government and advocacy organizations.
Sponsorship Opportunities
Invest in the Chamber and promote your brand at Policy & Advocacy events.