Rochester Business Alliance is actively engaged at the local, state and federal level on issues important to its members.  We're actively involved in partnerships and coalitions that allow us to be the voice of business in our region. 

Unshackle Upstate
Unshackle Upstate is giving taxpayers - individual citizens as well as businesses - a nonpartisan, unapologetic voice to demand change in Albany. Our message: We've had enough of the high taxes that make it expensive to live, work and raise a family in New York, the high taxes that make it difficult for our business to compete in the global market. We are demanding change.  To accomplish this, Unshackle Upstate will be actively and aggressively tracking incumbents voting records and identifying those who support our goals.  We will change the playing field…tipping it back in our favor by refusing to back away from our call for lower taxes and spending in New York.

Rochester Community Coalition
For the past several years, we have convened community leaders representing business, local government, education and nonprofits to develop a community agenda for Rochester.  The agenda, with its economic development focus, serves as a rallying cry on issues of importance to Rochester and provides our delegation with direction on community priorities.  The initiatives on the 2010 agenda include: mandate relief for local governments, reform of Empire Zones and Industrial Development Agencies without provisions that increase costs, such as prevailing wage requirements, and funding for the Rochester After-School Initiative, the Institute for Sustainability at Rochester Institute of Technology, and the Interstate 390 Interchange Project - which will support future growth of the University of Rochester.  

Health Care
Health care, and specifically rising health care costs, is consistently ranked by our members as the No. 1 issue affecting their success.  The RBA Health Care Initiative, which includes leading executives of some of Rochester's largest employers, looks for ways to provide affordable, quality health care with the ultimate goal of making Rochester the healthiest community in America.  Initiative efforts to date include the "eat well live well" challenge, physician pay, generic drugs, Lean Six Sigma in hospitals, and RHIO (health IT).  In partnership with the Finger Lakes Health Systems Agency, we will be launching a new community chronic disease management initiative in 2010.  In addition to local efforts, we are actively engaged in health care legislation at the state and federal levels and continue to voice our concerns over proposals that will threaten already struggling businesses with increased costs, taxes, fees, mandates, and regulatory burdens.

Political Endorsements
Through our political action committee, The Committee for a Strong Economy, we take an active role in endorsing candidates who are committed to improving the business climate of our community.  The process includes candidate interviews, public endorsements and a candidate endorsement night.    

Key Issues
We are actively engaged as the voice of business on a number of other issues of importance to our member employers, including employment legislation such as the Employee Free Choice Act and Paid Family Leave, workers' compensation reform, education and taxes.  In addition to providing information and resources to our members on these topics, we can also provide assistance on issues specific to your company.  

For more information, please visit the Public Policy page.