The Advocate Archive 2008

The Greater Nashua Chamber of Commerce takes seriously its role as the voice of the region’s business community. As a voice for wise public policy decisions at the Federal, State and Local level, the Chamber is dedicated to advocating for policies and regulations that allow a vibrant and dynamic business community to blossom while protecting the region’s unique quality of life.

As the only Chamber of Commerce with a professional lobbyist in the state capitol, the Greater Nashua Chamber of Commerce has been a key voice in issues from Tax Reform to Insurance Reform for Small Businesses. As a proactive advocacy organization, the Chamber annually develops legislative priorities that are identified and prioritized by the membership. As a non-partisan organization, the Chamber works closely with state leaders to meet the needs of New Hampshire’s growing business community. Over the past several years, the Chamber has championed a number of initiatives, including the successful creation of economic development zones to help redevelop our urban centers, the re-introduction of a Research & Development tax credit, Net Operating Loss tax reform which helps struggling businesses invest and grow, and the creation of a Rail Transit Authority to oversee the re-introduction of commuter rail to our state.

Our primary objective for the 2008 session relates to the establishment of a liability cap for future rail operations in New Hampshire. A liability cap would limit the amount of damages for which the operator of a rail line could be held responsible, which is a critical step toward eventually securing a commuter rail line between Boston and Nashua. The Chamber is working closely with the City and the Nashua Regional Planning Commission, along with our colleagues in Manchester, to realize this important goal.

The Chamber updates its members on its state advocacy efforts on a weekly basis, through an e-publication known as The Advocate. Past copies of this weekly e-publication are posted along the right side of this screen, for your review.

The Chamber’s advocacy efforts go far beyond our work at the State House, by focusing an intense energy on issues of local importance that affect the ability of our businesses to thrive within the city of Nashua itself. In 2007, the Chamber created a Local Advocacy Task Force comprised of 11 prominent business leaders, tasked with driving the Chamber’s strategic initiatives at the local level. This task force serves as a resource to our city’s elected and appointed officials, providing assistance and expertise to commonly shared goals promoting the positive development of the city. The Task Force intends to bring a final resolution to the debate surrounding the need for the Broad Street Parkway as its top strategic issue in 2008.