Iowa Business Day on the Hill in Two Weeks - Monday Memo 2/27/17
February 27, 2017
2017 Iowa Business Day on the Hill March 14; DOTH Reception on the 13th
During the first quarter of the year, much of ABI's work focuses on public policy and the Iowa General Assembly. A few years ago, following on the exploding success of the annual ABI Legislative Briefing and Reception, ABI created the annual ABI Day on the Hill. The event capitalizes on members’ wishes to get even more involved in ABI’s public policy work.
This event gives ABI members an opportunity to get the very latest news from the Capitol in the heat of legislative activity. Members are taken by private coach to the Capitol to meet with and hear from key state officials, legislative leaders, and their legislators. The event has grown bigger and better each year and this year's event will again be conducted in partnership with the Iowa Chamber Alliance and the Iowa Chapter of the National Federation of Independent Business.
Business Day on the Hill 2017 is being held Tuesday, March 14. The program begins with registration that morning at the ABI office. Following a report on legislative news and updates on related issues, and including other information, DOTH participants will head to the Capitol for meetings with legislators. Register now for this event by clicking on https://www.cvent.com/events/iowa-business-day-on-the-hill-2017/registration-987f9de27d714ea290dad8dedcf691b9.aspx.
The evening prior to Business Day on the Hill, March 13, join ABI, ICA, and NFIB for the third annual Day on the Hill Reception. The reception will be held at the Scenic Route Bakery in Des Moines' East Village.
By the way, March 14 is also the day of the March meeting of the ABI Board of Directors. Thank you in advance for your participation in these important meetings.
ABI Connecting Statewide Leaders Forum Thursday at Kinnick Stadium in Iowa City
The next event in ABI's popular Connecting Statewide Leaders series will be held this Thursday (March 2) in Iowa City. A high-value panel, networking, and reception will all be a part of the program, which will be held at the beautiful McCord Indoor Club at Kinnick Stadium. For more information and to register, click on http://www.cvent.com/events/connecting-statewide-leaders/event-summary-807a18b08352495697a6aa16074b3c42.aspx. Join fellow ABI members, Leadership Iowa Class members, local business leaders, and others for this event.
Leadership Iowa Class Heads to Iowa City
Speaking of Iowa City, that will be the location of the next session of the 2016-2017 Leadership Iowa class. Some members of the class will convene Wednesday evening.
The majority of the session will take place Thursday and Friday and will focus on health care. This group of class members has been another in a string of terrific LI classes. Look for more information at the board meeting on March 14.
Legislative Update Teleconference Friday
Periodically throughout the legislative session, ABI lobbyists Senior Vice President Public Policy Nicole Crain, Director Public Policy Jessica Harder, and Coordinator Public Policy Counsel Brad Hartkopf host a teleconference to give you the very latest information from the Statehouse. Updates on bills, legislative proposals, state actions, and other matters are covered in each call. Your specific questions about those topics are also very much welcomed.
The next call will be held the Friday, March 3 at 8:00 a.m. and you and your employees are encouraged to participate. The call is free as a part of your ABI membership, but please register at https://www.iowaabi.org/events/detail/49-abi-legislative-update-teleconference-members-only/.
ABI Board to Meet March 14
Make plans to attend the next meeting of the ABI Board of Directors. ABI Chair Lori Schaefer-Weaton (Agri-Industrial Plastics Company, Fairfield) and members of the board will next meet on March 14th. That day will see a full day of ABI meetings and events, as the annual ABI Day on the Hill program and other events will also take place then. Register for the meeting and get more information at http://www.cvent.com/d/yvq6jf.
Annual Conference Registration Now Open
Registration for the 2017 Taking Care of Business Conference opened last Wednesday and there was an immediate rush of people registering. Remember that one hotel, the fabulous Hotel Julien, is already sold-out. Plenty of rooms remain at the Grand Harbor Hotel and you can find more information here: https://www.iowaabi.org/events/annual-conference/. ABI will connect you to other nearby hotels once the Grand Harbor sells-out.
Finalize your plans to join your ABI colleagues in Dubuque June 6-8 for what will be the best ABI conference ever. Go here to register: http://www.cvent.com/events/2017-abi-taking-care-of-business-conference/event-summary-d7a94db8d5de4399b11588b1b5f98d84.aspx.
ABI Workers Compensation Seminar on March 30
The biennial ABI Workers Compensation Seminar will be held on March 30 at ABI. The program will include the latest information about work comp (which may be addressed by the Iowa General Assembly) and the latest information about best practices being utilized by other companies. Click here for more information and to register: http://www.cvent.com/events/workers-compensation-best-practices-lessons-learned-and-ideas-from-the-innovators/event-summary-b7df219082a0451dbed5f8305d5f1685.aspx.
ABI Members asked to Sign-Off on Electronic Industry Citizenship Coalition Code of Conduct
At a recent meeting of the ABI CFO Roundtable, members discussed something called the Electronic Industry Citizenship Coalition Code of Conduct. The code has been described as a set of standards related to social, environmental, and ethical issues in the electronic industry supply chain. Go here to learn more (you can also use this link to access information about EICC itself): http://www.eiccoalition.org/standards/code-of-conduct/.
If your company has also been contacted about the EICC Code of Conduct, please reply to this message. ABI members are curious about how wide-ranging the request has become.
The Private Bank Presents Economic/Financial Outlook
ABI member The Private Bank hosted a presentation related to the economy and financial markets last week in West Des Moines. I'll bet you have been to many similar events over the years, I know I have. This presentation was exceptional.
Chris Slusher, Managing Director of The Private Bank Capital Markets Group, was the speaker. His presentation focused on an outlook based on President Trump's administration and other factors. There is too much information to share in this memorandum, but the bottom line is that Mr. Slusher sees an economy in transition. Look for further rate hikes from the Federal Reserve, look for rising inflation, commodity prices, and steady to rising unemployment. Thanks to the bank's Iowa/Nebraska Market President, Kim Butler (The Private Bank, West Des Moines) and to bank Managing Director and ABI Board Member Kelly Barrick (The Private Bank, West Des Moines) for bringing this great presentation to West Des Moines!