Members of the Salt Lake Chamber recently returned from our annual Washington, D.C. Trip, which connects local business and community leaders with Utah’s federal delegation as well as to other policy and business groups headquartered in the nation’s capital. We look forward to this trip every year as it serves an important function in the Chamber’s public policy efforts. Each year, we have the opportunity to share the business community’s key federal priorities with our elected representatives and express how their action on these priorities will have a direct, positive impact on Utah’s small businesses, labor force and competitive economy.

Here are the Chamber’s 2018 Federal Priorities:

Immigration: We urge Utah’s federal delegation to lead the way in advancing comprehensive immigration reform consistent with the principles included in the Utah Compact: strengthen families, support economic growth, focus law enforcement efforts on serious crime and uphold our values as a free society.

Trade: We ask Congress to assert its role in modernizing NAFTA as well as ensuring a legal framework is in place if other trade agreements, like the TPP or the TTIP, are pulled.

Health & Entitlement Reform: We call upon Congress to continue the work of tax reform by revising our entitlement and health care programs in order to provide equitable, efficient services to those who need it most.

Regulation: Congress must take back regulatory control by passing the Regulatory Accountability Act. This will help the legislative branch reclaim its rulemaking authority by requiring agencies to be more transparent when a rule involves costly regulations.

Additional Priorities

  • Infrastructure: Congress should act to provide a long-term, stable funding source that states can rely upon to plan for the future. Congress should also investigate leveraging up to $250 billion in private capital to accelerate our nation’s much-needed infrastructure projects.
  • Energy: Congress should work to diversify our nation’s energy portfolio, modernize our energy policies and promote energy independence.
  • Medical Cannabis: We urge lawmakers to quickly put into place a federal legal framework to allow for timely and responsible medical cannabis treatment, safeguard the public interest, and address potential impacts to the business community such as banking and insurance regulation and an impaired workforce.

While challenges exist and important work is still to be done, Utahns have proven that an industrious spirit coupled with collaboration and compromise lead to extraordinary results. As such, we encouraged our congressional leaders to collaborate with partners in the public and private sector and work across the aisle to advance federal solutions that strengthen our state’s economic prosperity and quality of life.

Now is the time to act and we, as representatives of Utah’s business community, stand ready to assist our Federal Delegation in their efforts.

Learn how you can get involved by emailing our Public Policy team at: policy@slchamber.com.

Derek Miller
President and CEO
Salt Lake Chamber