1. Charting our Future Conference Wrap-up

2. Creating the Advocacy Alliance 2 Late 2013: Board discusses policy involvement on regional issues Conference calls before Annual Conference May 2014: Annual Conference breakout session Steering committee meetings First Advocacy Conference in Sioux Falls, Nov. 2014

3. 3 Issues

4. Advocacy Alliance - Mission Possible 4 Mission: Interstate regional advocacy is the main focus of the MACE Advocacy Alliance. Policy issues- including energy, agriculture, transportation and interstate commerce to name a few- affect city, regional and state economies. At these junctures it may be beneficial for local chambers to mobilize their grassroots to advocate on behalf of the their constituents. With this in mind the MACE Advocacy Alliance has its greatest influence.

5. What ties the MACE region together? 5 Industries Infrastructure Natural resources

6. Principles and Priorities - 2014 Conference 6 Transportation Energy Natural Resources

7. Advocacy Alliance - Charting our Future 7 From its inception, the Alliance has been member driven Steering Committee Direction Issues Principles and Priorities We turn again to our members to ask – What’s next?

8. Advocacy Alliance – New Working Groups 8 Waters of the United States Rail Regulation Wages, hours, employment mandates If you are interested in being a member of any of these working groups, please contact Larry Dowell

9. Discussion Questions 9 For our Alliance, what does “regionalism” mean as we consider issues to prioritize? What should be our priority issues going forward? How can the Alliance be most impactful in supporting our chamber members? What sort of local Chamber challenges might arise as we consider issues of regional impact? How do we address them with our members and boards?