LOUISVILLE, Ky. (December 17, 2019) – Before a sold-out audience of business, civic, and community leaders, Greater Louisville Inc. released its legislative priorities for the upcoming sessions in both Kentucky and Indiana. The 2020 State Legislative Agenda includes advocacy in Kentucky for city and county government tax reform, public transportation, expanded access to high-quality childcare, empowering employers to address the substance use disorder crisis, expungement, criminal justice reform, funding and choice for education and workforce development. In Indiana, our work to support pregnant workers will continue after the successful passage of Senate Bill 18, the Kentucky Pregnant Workers Act, which became law this year.

“The success of GLI’s Advocacy efforts in Frankfort and Indianapolis depends on the engagement of the greater Louisville business community,” said Tim Hagerty, chair of GLI’s Public Policy Council.  “GLI makes decisions on public policy issues and sets legislative priorities through a member-driven process. More than 300 members of the business community serve on public policy issue advisory committees that make recommendations to the Public Policy Council, which vets the legislative agenda approved by GLI’s Board of Directors.”

“Thanks to GLI Advocacy this year we saw key wins in Kentucky with employer-employee arbitration agreements, support for pregnant workers, increased access to expungement and, after several years of hard work, the admittance of Indiana into the Nurse Licensure Compact. And those wins are something for the Louisville business community to celebrate,” said Kent Oyler, president and CEO of GLI. “As my fifth year as GLI’s CEO comes to a close we are proud to be the reigning number one chamber in the country. And a big part of winning national Chamber of the Year is due to GLI’s advocacy efforts on the local, state and national levels. This public policy work results in hundreds of millions of dollars in annual positive economic impact for our investors. It makes our region much more business friendly. And quite frankly, it makes this a better place to live.”

“It will take all of us working together – reaching across political party lines – to confront the major issues we face as a region,” said Sarah Davasher-Wisdom, chief operating officer and chief of staff for GLI. “Together we can build a stronger, resilient economy with a skilled workforce, a solid infrastructure, and a business climate that attracts businesses and helps them grow.”

A full version of the agenda can be found at https://www.greaterlouisville.com/advocacy/agendas-and-publications/2020-state-legislative-agenda.

GLI also honored the 2019 Most Valuable Policymakers, legislators from the greater Louisville region who voted 90 percent or more in favor of GLI’s legislative priorities and championed key GLI initiatives:

Senator Julie Raque Adams      Rep. Thomas Huff                Rep. Rob Rothenburger
Senator Ernie Harris                  Rep. Chad McCoy                 Rep. Bart Rowland
Senator Jimmy Higdon              Rep. Jerry Miller                  Rep. Nancy Tate
Senator Paul Hornback              Former Rep. Tim Moore     Rep. James Tipton
Senator Stephen Meredith        Rep. Jason Nemes                Rep. Russell Webber
Rep. Kevin Bratcher                   Speaker David Osborne       Indiana State Rep. Ed Clere
Rep. Jim DuPlessis

 

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About Greater Louisville Inc.

Greater Louisville Inc. (GLI) - the Metro Chamber of Commerce is focused on growing the regional economy. As the region’s largest convener of business leadership, GLI leads economic and global outreach strategies focused on business attraction, nurtures the entrepreneurial eco-system, and champions the development of the community’s talent base. As the voice of Greater Louisville’s business community, GLI advocates for a pro-business environment and facilitates businesses engagement on issues that impact regional competitiveness. GLI is the 2019 national Chamber of the Year and is one of only three percent of chambers nationally certified with 5-star accreditation status by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, based on GLI’s dedicated policy efforts, effective operations, beneficial programs and overall positive community impact. Learn about our investor benefits and connect with us on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn using @GLIchamber or visit visit www.greaterlouisville.com.