Three More Policy Councils Debut

by Jessica Duboff

Three more of the Chamber's revamped Policy Councils held their first meetings of 2011 in the last week, emphasizing a renewed focus on industry participation, partnerships and engagement with regional thought-leaders.

Environmental Sustainability 

Last Friday, the Enviro Sustainability Council welcomed an industry leadership panel to discuss the most important environmental policies and regulations on the horizon for 2011. Fran Inman (Senior VP, Majestic Realty) represented the logistics sector, Cathy Reheis-Boyd (President, Western State Petroleum Association) spoke from the oil/gas perspective, and Frank Harris (Manager, Corporate Environmental Policy, Southern California Edison) and Gillian Wright (Director of Commercial & Industrial Services, Southern California Gas Company) represented utilities.

The group discussed the impacts of AB32 implementation on their industries and their involvement with CARB on the process, with Fran stating it was Majestic's motto that "You're either at the table or on the menu." The cap/trade and low carbon fuel standard elements were identified as two of the most impactful provisions for WSPA, while the Gas Company highlighted that their natural gas sector was already below 1990 levels and they have  yet to hit their limit on what can be done with regard to efficiency.

The panel was asked what kind of messages they were getting from Governor Brown, the general consensus was that he is focused on the budget deficit at the moment, that the magnitude of November's Prop 22 & 26 has yet to fully be understood, but that they were glad Mary Nichols was kept on as the head of CARB. The meeting concluded with a lightening round of the panelists highlighting one more issue they each were focused on. Fran spoke to implementation of SB375 and the hurdles with modeling being different throughout the state. Frank brought up the State Water Resources Board's ban on once-through cooling (an issue the Chamber has worked closely on with the Department of Water & Power), while Gillian discussed upcoming AQMD standards and the challenges with reducing emissions in the future when 13 of the 15 highest Nox emitters in the region are mobile, not stationary sources. Cathy concluded by pointing to CEQA as a game-changer for business and how we need to get back to the law's original purpose.

Health Policy Council

This week kicked off with a Monday luncheon welcoming the new LA County Department Of Health Services (DHS) Director, Dr. Mitch Katz. Sponsored by the California Endowment, the Chamber's Health Policy Council partnered with the LA Health Collaborative to host over 150 local business and city leaders.

Dr. Katz joined LA DHS after 13 years as the Director of San Francisco's public health department, overseeing the implementation of a universal health care program. He spoke to the Council about his vision,  priorities and plans for the local health care safety net during this crucial time.  He then took the time to answer numerous audience questions, including his views on state budget cuts to Medi-Cal and the future of MLK Hospital.

Economy & Infrastructure Policy Council

Yesterday the all-new Economy & Infrastructure Council met to discuss The Year Ahead- L.A.'s Economy & Opportunties for 2011. Dr. Chris Thornberg, a Principal at Beacon Economics and a member of State Controller John Chiang's Council of Economic Advisors, delivered a lively, somewhat bullish regional economic forecast. His message was the "the recovery is here," the problem is that it has been a weak recovery due to slow consumer and real estate growth. Despite the labor market, the economy is growing, albeit without jobs- meaning we have a social problem, but not an economic one. Dr. Thornberg praised California's "phenomenal assets," but urged Chamber members to get down into the trenches and work to level the playing field for all industries instead of promoting certain ones at the expense of others.

Moving from California to the global economy, Dr. Richard Drobnick, Director of the USC Center for International Business Education & Research then spoke to how California is the gateway to the US for Asian markets and how by embracing the green economy, the state is encouraging business to grow in innovative ways. He encouraged business leaders to take advantage of the international students that flock to our state to attend research universities, which lead to a discussion on how to improve and value our K-12 education to make it as equally desirable.

That wraps up our January month of Council meetings, looking forward to the first week of February to launch our new Government Affairs Policy Council.