The Government Affairs Committee members include several business leaders from the community. Dave Lippert; President of Hamilton Caster & Manufacturing, is Chairman of this committee.

In speaking about the value the Chamber brings to the businesses in our area Dave recently commented, “I think that most businesses that are members of the Chamber don’t really have an understanding of how valuable the Chamber is and how representative it is in terms of local government. We have a huge voice through the Chamber of Commerce, especially for those who are too busy running their businesses to actually take part in the decision making processes that go on. The Chamber is a huge proponent of businesses in this area.” Much of the discussion of these issues begins in the Government Affairs Committee Meetings. If you would like to participate in this committee, please let us know. Your voice may make a difference!

During the Government Affairs meetings we frequently get a report from government representatives as to the hot issues that are being discussed at each level of government. Frequent attendees to these meetings include a representative from U.S. Representative John Boehner’s office, State of Ohio Representative Courtney Combs, City Councilman Jim Noonan, a representative of Butler County, and a representative from the Hamilton City School District. Many times the interaction between these individuals and members of the business community proves to be invaluable. In speaking about the value of the Chamber’s Government Affairs Committee, Representative Combs said, “As the local State Representative, I find it very beneficial to get input from the business community. This helps me know first hand what their views are and provides an opportunity to discuss which bills may or may not pass and why.”

The most recent Government Affairs related project we have completed is the new brochure of the 2007 Directory of Government Officials. Available to any member of the Chamber, this easy to use brochure provides important contact information for our publicly elected officials. Additional contact information is provided for the various City of Hamilton and Butler County departments.

Your input is valuable to the Chamber. If you would like to serve on the Government Affairs Committee, we’d value your input. If you have a government related issues that is of particular concern to your business, let us know and we’ll bring it up for discussion. Either way we’ll continue to be your voice to all levels of government! Thanks for your partnership!