Legislation & Policy
Legislative Platform
As a cross-sector, member-driven organization, the East Bay Economic Development Alliance (East Bay EDA) promotes, advocates and influences legislation and policy efforts that contribute to a strong economy that attracts business, job opportunities and investment to the East Bay region. These guiding principles will enable East Bay EDA to engage its members to advocate and advance policies that contribute to a more equitable, resilient, and sustainable regional economy.
East Bay EDA’s legislative platform outlines priority issues to facilitate strategic and timely responses to relevant legislation and advocacy opportunities. East Bay EDA will consider taking positions on ballot measures, bills, and other policy issues of regional significance consistent with the principles outlined in the following domains if they will not negatively impact or potentially cause division within the organization’s membership. Legislation or policies that create new regulatory barriers must have an overall beneficial effect on the goals of retaining and expanding business in the East Bay.
Business Climate & Economic Competitiveness
East Bay EDA supports efforts to attract and retain businesses of all sizes and industry sectors to ensure that our region continues to enjoy the benefits of a diverse composition of companies and industries. The organization also respects and understands the importance and value of regulations governing our business climate, while also appreciating the challenges facing companies trying to operate in our regional economy. The continued challenges facing small businesses – especially those owned by people of color and women – underscores the need for targeted support and technical assistance to facilitate connecting with available programs and resources. This includes expanding and simplifying access to capital for business owners, assisting entrepreneurs with forming new businesses, facilitating efforts to support greater equity and inclusion in contracting and procurement opportunities, increasing infrastructure investment, monitoring new regulations, and supporting capacity-building for small business assistance organizations.
Economic Empowerment, Equity & Inclusion
East Bay EDA supports effective systemic investments that increase opportunities for economic empowerment, including advocating for programs, policies, and services that facilitate more equitable access to employment, education, and housing, which are foundational to improving the quality of life in our region. This includes efforts to shrink income and wealth gaps, invest in broadband and other infrastructure, reduce poverty and homelessness, promote positive youth development, decrease community violence, reform unfair practices within our criminal justice systems, and remove other institutional and structural barriers that contribute to inequities across our region, including supporting the region’s immigrant workforce. East Bay EDA intends to use this frame as it monitors how artificial intelligence (AI) impacts different sectors of our economy in a way that maximizes opportunity while mitigating any potential harm that may emerge from its rapid growth and proliferation.
Education & Workforce Development
East Bay EDA is committed to working with our regional networks of partners and stakeholders to ensure that the East Bay remains a leader in providing a globally competitive and diverse workforce that can access quality jobs and careers. East Bay EDA seeks to advance access to quality early childcare, K-12, post-secondary education, and quality career technical education (CTE) training that supports college and career readiness for all students. The organization also supports policies that help to create and sustain an accessible, affordable, and equitable post-secondary education system for all students, particularly at our community colleges, California State University (CSU), and University of California (UC) levels.
Environmental Stewardship & Community Health
East Bay EDA respects and understands the importance and value of regulations governing environmental, public health, and other relevant concerns and issues while also appreciating and balancing the needs of business and industry to be able to operate in our regional economy. The organization supports the development and management of physical infrastructure and systems that keep our businesses and communities safe, promote public health, and positions people to be more capable and resilient to adapt to a changing climate. We also seek to maintain our leading position as a region with businesses, including health care systems, that are creating cleaner and greener products and technologies, including the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. East Bay EDA is proud of our region’s legacy of supporting climate resilience and promotes efforts to manage, protect, and enjoy our region’s natural assets and physical resources while recognizing business needs and requirements.
Housing Access & Development
East Bay EDA advocates for the development of more and varied housing units of all types across the entire East Bay region. The organization recognizes the urgency to accelerate the construction of new homes and redevelop or reuse commercial and other sites for high-value residential use. The organization encourages strategies and policies that increase available financing and expedite the construction of housing, especially focusing on affordable housing for the most cost-burdened families and individuals, including both homeowners and renters. East Bay EDA also supports the development of impactful, innovative, and scalable solutions that address housing insecurity and homelessness.
International Trade
With manufacturing accounting for nearly thirty percent of the East Bay’s gross regional product, East Bay EDA supports opportunities to develop and expand foreign direct investment and other business opportunities among companies that seek to build or expand their import and export markets. Recognizing the critical importance of the Port of Oakland to the Northern California economy and our nation’s tradeable sectors, East Bay EDA supports an environment that fosters and strengthens trade relationships for companies operating in our region. The organization also seeks to improve the growth, resilience, and sustainability of regional supply chains to maximize the East Bay’s opportunities in the global economy.
Land Use & Infrastructure
East Bay EDA supports investments in the development, maintenance, operations, and reliability of cost-effective transportation networks and other essential infrastructure (including broadband, the electrical grid, energy generation, transportation networks, and water systems) that expand and enhance the mobility of people and goods within and outside the region. The organization supports mass transit and embraces policies that encourage multimodal transportation to ameliorate disparities and reduce inequities arising from increasingly challenging and complex commute sheds. The organization supports policies that expedite and facilitate mixed-use development and infill particularly near employment, commercial, and transit corridors.
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