Pictured (l to r):  Chautauqua County Executive, Vince Horrigan, Todd Tranum, Chautauqua County Chamber of Commerce President/CEO, and Becky Robbins, Rotary Member
 
Becky Robbins introduced Todd Tranum, President & CEO, Chautauqua County Chamber of Commerce.  Great and thorough intro by Becky.
 
Todd began his presentation by thanking everyone for being here.  He also recognized Vince Horrigan and thanked him for his service to our community and service to our nation.  Vince is a true gem for our community.  Todd mentioned there are many challenges and opportunities in our region of the state.  
 
Challenges
 
National level - what is going on in Washington; nationalist attitude will not be good for business; globalization is very important; not a reason to become isolationist; we need to work with our partners globally to make sure these things move forward.
 
President’s draft budget – very concerned about plans to abolish the Appalachian Region Commission; the Chamber has applied for some of these grants; also, concerned about Great Lakes funding – took a lot of federal and state investment to clean the Great Lakes and ensure their health; cutting community development block grants are not good; we cannot take a step back; programs to help medium and small manufacturers in our county are essential.
 
State level – we need to do some things in Albany to change how things are done; NYS needs ethics reform; something must happen to reinstall faith in NYS government.
The Chamber must advocate for infrastructure investment and broadband expansion for our communities.  Medicaid reforms and worker’s compensation costs need to be adjusted because they are no longer sustainable.  As an example, Todd mentioned a Pennsylvania business owner who did an analysis on worker’s compensation costs.  For him to move his company to NYS, it would be 10 times more expensive for worker’s compensation.  We must make it more advantageous for business owners to do business in NYS/  
 
The area continues to have too many layers of government. Small businesses are competing with ecommerce (Amazon) and people across the world and the nation. We need to work on strategies to help those businesses compete in the new retail environment. Colleges are having problems with enrollment.  Ultimately, we need to grow our tax base and be more cost competitive to survive.  
 
Opportunities
 
Chautauqua County has a very strong manufacturing base.  19% of our employment is in manufacturing.  $4.4 billion in annual shipments move out of Chautauqua County.  $424 million in payroll supported by manufacturing.  
 
The health care sector is growing.  $649 million in payroll – 8600 jobs.  Been regaining its footing; local hospital alignments with bigger players – this is what is occurring across the nation in the health care sector; have healthy regional hospitals we have partnered with. Alignment with national recognized hospitals, will help with recruitment for sure.  
 
Chautauqua County also has great infrastructure in terms of education; JCC and SUNY Fredonia and JBC.  Essentially, all in a small area which has led to enrollment challenges.  These institutions are critical to the economy and our community.  Infrastructure in terms of energy production with BPU.  Competitive rates on energy have kept manufacturers here!  
 
Variety of not of profits doing great work in our community.  A number of service oriented organizations doing good for our communities.  We have a wonderful community that is very diverse in what it offers.    
 
The Chautauqua County Chamber of Commerce is a privately funded organization that represents 900 businesses and 24,000 employees in Chautauqua County. 
 
The Chamber has a 5-point focus to assist local business:
1.    Connect business to consumers
2.    Increase connections between businesses
3.    Containing health insurance cost through proactive solutions
4.    Advocacy – reducing taxes, help businesses be more competitive
5.    Supporting economic, workforce and tourism development
 
Todd’s Call to Action – get engaged with your community; continue to volunteer and look for opportunities; every chance you have, please buy local; look for suppliers locally; give your local businesses a chance!  Support them!  
 
For more information about the Chautauqua County Chamber of Commerce, please visit their web site at www.chautauquachamber.org.