Policy Priorities
Each year, the Overland Park Chamber develops local, state and federal platforms through a member-driven public policy process led by its Public Policy & Advocacy Committee.
After issues are identified by Chamber members, business leaders and community stakeholders, Chamber staff works with the Public Policy & Advocacy Committee to refine into formal policy recommendations to the Executive Committee and the Board of Directors. Once approved, they become the Chamber's official legislative platforms.
The Chamber's government affairs staff, including its full-time lobbyist, advocates for the adopted priorities with city, county, state and federal officials.
Public Policy Platforms
Federal Policy
- The Chamber encourages diligent, selfless and bipartisan service to address the issues facing the United States in a proficient, timely, and transparent manner.
- The Chamber supports reasonable, fact-based free-market efforts and solutions for improving our local, regional, and national safety, economic vitality, and quality of life.
- The Chamber supports developing reasonable, fact-based legislative and regulatory solutions that are developed in partnership with government and business. These solutions should reward outcomes and compliance and treat all companies and business categories in a fair, equitable, stable and predictable manner.
- The Chamber encourages cooperation between all levels of government to provide more efficient delivery of services while maximizing the return on investment for taxpayers.
State Policy
The Chamber has adopted the policies and priorities it will support during the Kansas legislative session on behalf of the Overland Park business community. These policies include:
- Governance
- Education
- Taxation and legislative fiscal authority
- Transportation
- Economic development
- Bioscience initiatives
- Judicial selection
- Energy and environment
- Health care
- Housing
- Immigration and workers' compensation
Local Policy
The Chamber supports maintaining elements contributing to quality of life. We encourage regularly assessing the continued availability of those elements as well as the evolution of the characteristics of a desirable quality of life, and we believe the optimal way to accomplish that assessment and preservation is through the efforts of a local government most close to the people and comprised of officials elected through non-partisan elections.
We also recognize the value contributed by the strong history of partnerships between our local government and business community and pledge to work to continue and strengthen those relationships.