Henderson Chamber of Commerce releases its 2013 legislative survey results

Top priorities include job creation, taxes, health care cost reform

HENDERSON, Nev. – The results of the Henderson Chamber of Commerce’s 2013 Legislative Survey are in, and the business community has overwhelmingly chosen economic issues as their top concerns they want this year’s legislators to address.

With the 77th Regular Session of the Nevada Legislature well underway, Nevada’s politicians will have to make critical decisions on a range of topics important to the state’s constituents and businesses. This year, Henderson businesses are especially looking for leadership from legislators on key issues such as job creation, business taxes, and raising Nevada’s education standards and graduation rates.

“The economy is of vital importance to our members,” said Scott Muelrath, president and CEO of the Henderson Chamber of Commerce. “Growing Nevada’s economic opportunities through job creation and diversification is vital to not only local businesses, but to the communities they serve. It’s through initiatives that support these issues that we can achieve a healthy, prosperous future for everyone.”

While these issues are especially important in Southern Nevada, where despite improving conditions the region’s unemployment rate is still above 10 percent, the Henderson business community represents a broad swathe of industries, and in many ways is depictive of the state’s business environment.

“Our membership ranges from home-based businesses to those with hundreds of employees, and from professional and financial service providers to craftsmen and mechanics,” Muelrath said. “The wide range is very representative of the state’s business community, and it’s why the results of this survey are so telling of what Nevada’s businesses would like to see legislators focus on this year.”

Before each legislative session, the chamber asks its members to rank important issues based on a scale of “extremely important” to “not important.” The issues range from the economy to education, health care, energy and other topics important to Nevada. This year, members chose economic topics over all others as priorities, with 77 percent of members ranking economic development and redevelopment as very or extremely important. A close second was the issue of taxation, with 73 percent of members describing it as “very important” or “extremely important.”

The top Henderson Chamber of Commerce 2013 Legislative Survey results, with percentages indicating the fraction of members marking the issue as “very important” or “extremely important”:

1. Economic Development/Redevelopment – 77 percent
   1. Job Creation – 81 percent
   2. Economic Diversification – 71 percent
2. Taxes – 73 percent
   1. Business Taxes – 82 percent
   2. Payroll/Employee Taxes – 81 percent
3. Education 70 percent
   1. Graduation Rates/Skill Gaps – 82 percent
4. Health Care – 66 percent
   1. Healthcare Costs – 93 percent
5. Infrastructure – 56 percent
   1. Water Supply – 74 percent
6. Energy – 44 percent
   1. Energy Costs – 72 percent

The survey was distributed to all of the chamber’s 900 members via email. Members had two weeks to respond.

The Henderson Chamber of Commerce is known locally, state-wide and nationally for its strong legislative presence. A bi-partisan nonprofit organization, the Henderson Chamber of Commerce has held strong relationships with Nevada’s political leaders on both sides of the aisle for many years and endorses candidates who reflect a history and political agenda in support of small- to medium-sized businesses, which comprise most of the chamber’s membership. Similarly, it chooses the issues it supports based on the evolving needs of its membership.

The Henderson Chamber of Commerce is a nonprofit, voluntary organization committed to promoting and supporting member businesses.

For more information, call the Henderson Chamber of Commerce at 702-565-8951 or visit www.hendersonchamber.com.