OHIOCHAMBER.COM MARCH / APRIL 2016 GET INFORMED. 1 Former Speaker of the U.S. House John Boehner to speak at Annual Meeting Highlights of Ohio’s Common Sense Initiative Ohio small businesses get help to meet clean air rules SHARE SUCCESS. 4 Medical research It’s time to fix Ohio’s broken unemployment system Employers — the Employment Law Uniformity Act needs your support True-up coming in July State commission studying Ohio tax policy with a view to 2020 STAY CONNECTED. 6 An Official Publication of The Ohio Chamber of Commerce The Ohio Chamber in action Getting it right Letter from President & CEO FORMER SPEAKER OF THE U.S. HOUSE JOHN BOEHNER TO SPEAK AT ANNUAL MEETING The list of distinguished speakers While working to pay his way for the Ohio Chamber’s Annual through Xavier University, he met Meeting just got longer with the Debbie, who would become his wife addition of former Speaker of the of 41 years. Upon graduation from U.S. House John Boehner. He joins Xavier in 1977, Boehner took a job a list that includes George H. W. in a small plastics and packaging Bush, Colin Powell, Rudy Giuliani, company in the Cincinnati area. He and the Workforce, he wrote then Annual Meeting. The cost Tom Brokaw, Bob Woodward, Carly excelled in business, was steadily legislation to expand school choice, is $125, with special pricing for Fiorina and Jeb Bush. This will be promoted and reached the position strengthen America’s pension local chambers. his first major speaking event since of president before resigning in 1990 system and reform the federal retiring from the House in October. when he was elected to Congress. education bureaucracy to demand “The Ohio Chamber’s Annual This year’s event is April 5, 2016, at results for students and parents. Meeting is a valuable and enjoyable the Capitol Theatre. He got involved in state and local day of networking with other politics after seeing firsthand how Elected as House majority leader companies, along with legislators,” “We have strived to make our high taxes and red tape can impact in 2006 and chosen to become says Vice President, Membership Annual Meeting the premier entrepreneurs. Boehner served House Republican leader later that Beau Euton. “This year, we are business event of the year,” says on the Union Township board of year, Boehner led the opposition especially excited to have Speaker Ohio Chamber President and CEO trustees from 1981 to 1984 and was to job-crushing proposals such as Boehner as our keynote. Many have Andrew E. Doehrel. “Each year, then elected to the Ohio House, President Barack Obama’s cap and worked with him since his days at we come up with a list of who’s where he served from 1985 to 1990. trade initiative and the Affordable the statehouse, and we look forward who when it comes to speakers the Care Act while promoting better to hearing from him. I know it’s business community would like to In 1990, the voters sent him to the solutions to the challenges facing difficult to walk away from your hear. We’ve been very fortunate to U.S. House, where he took a strong American families. On Jan. 5, business for a day, but I guarantee get these top names year after year.” stand against pork-barrel spending, 2011, Boehner took the gavel as the Ohio Chamber’s 2016 Annual and as part of the reform-minded speaker of the House following the Meeting will be worth your time.” A former businessman, Boehner Gang of Seven forced the closure of historic 2010 election in which served as speaker of the United the scandal-ridden House Bank and Congressional Republicans, under States House of Representatives House Post Office. Boehner’s leadership, picked up QUICK GLANCE for nearly five years, during which 63 seats in the U.S. House. he led the drive for a smaller, less The speaker’s reputation as a costly and more accountable federal reformer grew as he worked Armed with the Pledge to America, government. The son of a bartender alongside then-House Speaker Newt a new governing agenda reflecting Annual and second oldest of 12 brothers and Gingrich, helping craft the historic the priorities of the American sisters, he grew up mopping floors 1994 Contract with America and people, Boehner focused on Meeting at the family tavern and playing helping to lead the effort to enact removing government barriers to football at Cincinnati Moeller the first balanced federal budget in private-sector job creation and Agenda High School. a generation. Later, as chairman of economic growth, addressing the House Committee on Education the drivers of America’s debt, 1 p.m. Chamber Day at the Capitol eliminating pork-barrel earmarks, program for local chambers and reforming Congress and rebuilding their members in Studio 2 of the the bonds of trust between the Riffe Center American people and their representatives in Washington. 3:30 p.m. Ohio Chamber Annual Meeting with keynote former Boehner’s keynote address will Speaker John Boehner in the focus on his business and political Capitol Theatre of the Riffe Center experience. After he delivers his keynote address, he will take 5 p.m. Awards presentation for questions from the audience. Chamber Action Alliance Registration information is 5:30 p.m. Legislative reception at the available at www.ohiochamber.com, Sheraton Hotel on State Street then click on Benefits & Events, WWW.OHIOCHAMBER.COM 1 You work to develop committed employees. We all work to see better outcomes. We’ll provide the resources to get you there. WE’RE ALL FOR OHIO. Working with some of Ohio’s best human resources attorneys, the Ohio Chamber built the HR Academy to help our members and the larger business community stay updated on important local and national HR issues. We continue to see strong participation in the program, garnering up to 200 participants per webinar, selling hundreds of HR books and enjoying active engagement in our HR Symposium series. We are proud to offer this homegrown effort that brings together Ohio expertise and leadership. Watch for more webinars and symposiums coming this year! For more information, contact Michelle Donovan at [email protected] or 614-228-4201. www.hracademyohio.com #allforohio GET INFORMED. By Mary Taylor, Lieutenant Governor By Chadwick Smith, Executive Director, Ohio Air Quality Development Authority HIGHLIGHTS OF OHIO’S OHIO SMALL COMMON SENSE INITIATIVE BUSINESSES GET When Gov. John Kasich Strategy 3. Implement a communication created Ohio’s Common plan to promote a two-way dialogue. HELP TO MEET Sense Initiative (CSI) in Effectively communicating the resource 2011, he placed it under that CSI represents to the business my leadership, and since community and hearing the community’s CLEAN AIR RULES that time we have been feedback remains a focus for us. Over the working to make Ohio’s course of 2015, we have developed a more business regulations simpler and Ohio more formalized communication plan to increase business friendly. outreach activity to Ohio businesses through multiple channels, both directly The core principles of CSI state regulations and through business associations. We are should be fair, transparent, easily followed excited to continue moving the bar in 2016 and facilitate economic growth. With those with calculated outreach efforts. The goal principles in mind, last year we updated our is to increase awareness as well as create a strategic plan to ensure CSI is maximizing positive experience. its impact on Ohio’s regulatory business climate. We have just published CSI’s 2015 Strategy 4. Utilize the Small Business Annual Report, and in it, we describe a Advisory Council to represent the number of accomplishments. business community. We continue to identify innovative ways the Small JDM Equipment used reprocessing equipment purchased with While our overall goal remains to reduce Business Advisory Council can increase its regulatory bureaucracy, the new strategic funding from the Clean Air Resource Center on the demolition of interaction with the business community. Veterans Memorial Auditorium in Columbus. The equipment crushes plan helps focus our objectives, introduces Having meetings on the road in local large pieces of concrete into a reusable stone product. new metrics to better measure our impact communities was a successful approach. and drives enhanced efforts to communicate The council convened in Wilmington and the role of CSI. This 2015 report represents Dayton and received positive feedback from Businesses in Ohio have a resource to help them our first year operating under the new both meetings. This provided an opportunity comply with changing federal and state clean air strategic plan. for local businesses to hear directly from standards. Small businesses frequently face challenges The report highlights instances in which senior agency officials, as well as converse in navigating the rules and regulations. The Ohio CSI has been able to positively impact a directly with the council members to talk Air Quality Development Authority (OAQDA) has business, as well as explains metrics and about the regulatory issues that impact their a program designed specifically to assist small performance criteria. For example, since business operations. businesses with the requirements of the Clean Air Act 2012, CSI has reviewed more than 7,850 Amendments of 1990, which introduced air pollution Strategy 5. Assist businesses with business-impacting rules, with 59 percent regulations that, for the first time, included small regulatory issues and identify broader businesses. of those either being amended or rescinded. areas of concern. Last year, we received 84 This is clearly an example of how CSI suggestions and requests for assistance. The Clean Air Resource Center (CARC), a program is working to strike a balance between The CSI ombuds function has always been of OAQDA, was created in 1996 to provide grants and effective regulations that are not overly or measured largely through success stories lower-cost loans to small Ohio companies that need unnecessarily burdensome.