CHAMBER BRIEFS
Chamber Briefs provides a monthly update on Chamber news, events and programs.
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program calendar
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WELCOME TO OUR NEW MEMBERS! |
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Motley's Mill Waterfall Estate
572 Motley's Mill Road
Chatham, VA 24531
434.202.3350
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Grifols Biomat Danville
202 Boatwright Ave
Danville, VA 24541
434.791.0326
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Funky's Arcade Bar
315 Lynn Street, Suite B
Danville, VA 24541
434.483.2511
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Comcast Business
560 Patton Street
Danville, VA 24541
434.951.3705
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CHAMBER OF COMMERCE ANNOUNCES STRATEGIC PLAN |
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January 25, 2023
NEWS RELEASE
For more information, contact: Anne Moore-Sparks
Danville Pittsylvania County Chamber of Commerce
150 Slayton Avenue
Danville, VA 24540
Phone: 434.836.6990
CHAMBER OF COMMERCE ANNOUNCES STRATEGIC PLAN
PLAN FOCUSES ON ACTIONS TO ENCOURAGE BUSINESS GROWTH
[DANVILLE, VA] – The Danville Pittsylvania County Chamber of Commerce is launching a four-year strategic plan designed to focus on the organization’s mission to support and engage business and industry through high quality resources and relationships. The plan is a complete set of goals, strategies, tactics, metrics, and timelines.
The four-month development process included surveys of Chamber members, community stakeholders, and Chamber leadership and studied Chamber demographics and trends to help target the initiatives that would best serve members and strengthen the organization.
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CHAMBER OF COMMERCE 2022 ANNUAL REPORT |
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CHAMBER DAY AT THE CAPITOL |
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The Danville Pittsylvania County Chamber of Commerce staff, along with board members, Chamber members, Leadership Southside participants, and Innovation Partners represented our region very well at Chamber Day at the Capitol!
Chamber staff also participated in the Virginia West Reception, toured the State Capitol Building, and attended the Olde Dominion Legislative Reception, hosted by the Virginia Chamber of Commerce.
Thank you to Mountain Valley Pipeline for sponsoring the Legislative Dinner.
It was a privilege to represent our 521 members and more than 21,000 member employees at this event.
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CHAMBER'S DIRECTOR OF MEMBER ENGAGEMENT PRESENTS TO SOUTHSIDE VIRGINIA SHRM |
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Christy shared information about your Chamber’s upcoming events, programming, Innovation Partner opportunities, and membership value.
We appreciate our partnership with this organization.
The meeting was held at Virginia Career Works in Danville, VA.
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LEADERSHIP SOUTHSIDE ATTENDED CHAMBER DAY AT THE CAPITOL |
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In addition, several Richmond leaders shared their thoughts on leadership with the class over dinner. Thank you to:
We are especially grateful to Mountain Valley Pipeline for sponsoring the dinner! The trip ended with a tour of the Virginia State Capitol.
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SUPPORT THE VIRGINIA FILING ELECTION FLEXIBILITY ACT |
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The legislative committee of the Chamber has voted to support HB1405/SB796 and join with chambers and other business advocates across Virginia.
The Chamber’s 2023 legislative agenda states that we will “Support tax reform that is equitable and broad-based, fosters a favorable business climate, encourages economic development, and promotes prosperity for all Virginians.” This bill would give Virginia corporate taxpayers additional flexibility to select how they file their corporate income tax returns.
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VA WEST BUSINESS & LEGISLATIVE COALITION 2023 SESSION UPDATE |
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After an initial week of session that was mostly organizational in nature, the 2nd week of session kicked off with many committees and subcommittees beginning to consider legislation for the first time. Some of this week’s highlights included:
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Several of Delegate Joe McNamara’s tax relief and reform bills were heard in the House Committee on Finance this week and received successful votes (HB 1405, HB 2138, HB 2319).
- Tax reform legislation and how to best spend the Commonwealth’s surplus funding will continue to be a source of debate between the Republican led House and the Democratic led Senate.
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The House Committee on Commerce and Energy advanced HB 1783 on a 12-9 vote, which would prohibit public entities from limiting natural gas as a retail energy choice for businesses and residential customers
- Some businesses in energy intensive trades - like manufacturers - rely on natural gas and this bill would add stability for those energy intensive industries. HB 1783 will advance to the floor of the House, where it will receive a vote from the full body.
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House legislation which would have expanded the geographical footprint of the Tobacco Region (HB 1441 & HB 1692) failed in the House Subcommittee on Natural Resources.
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While a Senate bill which seeks to expand the Tobacco Region’s territory (SB 919) has not yet received a hearing in the Senate, if House action is any indication, it’s pretty safe to say that it will meet the same fate in the 2023 session.
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ADVOCACY 101- HOW TO BE AN EFFECTIVE ADVOCATE THIS SEASON |
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FINDING INFORMATION ON LEGISLATION
You can find information on all legislation at the website https://lis.virginia.gov. If you know the bill number for the legislation you are tracking, you can enter it in “Bills & Resolutions” and you will be shown a summary of the bill, the bill text, its patron, and where it currently resides in the legislative process. If you are interested in finding a bill containing certain subject matter, you can do so in the same menu or by searching via keyword.
ACCESSING HOUSE/SENATE MEETING SCHEDULES
Among a ton of other information, you can find the House and Senate committee meeting schedules at https://virginiageneralassembly.gov under the “Members and Session” tab. At this webpage, you can also sign up to speak remotely at committee meetings and provide written comments. Since spoken testimony may be limited, I would highly recommend submitting written comment for each bill you intend to speak for or against.
TESTIFYING ON BILLS
If you are signed up to testify on a particular piece of legislation and are called on to speak in a committee meeting, start by thanking the committee chair, state your name, say where you are from, and inform the committee that you are a business owner or representative of your business. Briefly (and I mean briefly, testimony may be limited to 2 minutes or less) make a clear case for your position and then thank the committee members for their time.
CONTACTING YOUR LEGISLATOR(S)
Many of the same guidelines I mentioned for testifying to legislation also apply here. You can find your legislator at https://whosmy.virginiageneralassembly.gov and you will see the contact information for your representative. When calling or emailing your legislator in support or opposition to a bill, always state your name, your address, and that you are a business owner or representative residing in his or her district. Again, it is important to share your thoughts early and often.
Of course, feel free to contact me at any time if you have any questions on pending legislation or would like more information on how to get involved.
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The Danville Pittsylvania County Chamber of Commerce held its Annual Meeting of the Membership on January 25, 2023, at 7:30 a.m. at the Institute for Advanced Learning and Research.
Sonya Ravindranath Waddell, vice president and economist for regional and community analysis for the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond delivered the keynote on the challenges as well as unique assets of small cities and towns and rural areas that help attract employers and workers with a focus on the Dan River region.
The annual meeting also presented the 2023 officers and board of directors for the Chamber, delivered a report on 2022 accomplishments, and introduced a four-year strategic plan focusing on the organization’s mission to support and engage business and industry through high quality resources and relationships.
“The Chamber has an important role in leveraging the phenomenal growth that is coming to our region,” said Anne Moore-Sparks, president and CEO. “The region’s business community needs a strong advocate to help maximize the opportunities of that growth. Our leadership and strategic plan will ensure the Chamber fulfills that obligation for the benefit of our members.”
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(T) 434.836.6990 | (F) 434.836.6955
150 Slayton Avenue | Danville, VA 24540
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