When members of the New Orleans Chamber of Commerce (NOCC) expressed interest in becoming more involved in shaping and influencing local policies and initiatives that affect the business community, the Chamber responded by outlining strategic advocacy efforts. According to Sandra Lombana Lindquist, president and CEO of the NOCC, these efforts are focused on three areas: community impact; courageous leadership; and a business model that aligns with the Chamber’s mission.
“Our goal is to establish an open line of communication where we listen to our elected officials’ priorities and be a resource for them,” Lombana Lindquist says. “We also want to create opportunities for Chamber members [and] business leaders to build relationships with their elected officials. Our primary mission is creating an environment where businesses can grow and prosper, where citizens become a part of the fabric of our community and where people want to move and raise their families. We all need to be able to work together to advance our community, create jobs and enhance the quality of life [in] New Orleans. While we may not always agree on issues, we need to be able to work together to find a unified voice.”
On the business community side, objectives include
respecting the position that elected officials are in (and understanding the challenges they face); developing relationships built on trust and before issues arise; establishing an open line of communication; and using the opportunity to discuss the work that the Chamber does for the business community. Alternatively, the business community would like to be a resource for elected officials, providing them with data and facts as they consider policy issues.
“By involving itself in the shaping and influencing of local policies and initiatives, the Chamber ensures that the public sector is aware of the wants, needs and concerns of Chamber members and that the policies and initiatives pursued will promote and grow the local business community,” says William D. Aaron, Jr., who has served as Government Affairs Committee Co-Chair at the NOCC since 2010.
To reach these advocacy goals, the NOCC is helping to pass laws and creating events that offer opportunities for the business community to meet with elected officials in an informal and friendly setting. “It is the Chamber’s job to convene business leaders, industry experts and the public sector,” Lombana Lindquist says. “These days, the Chamber not only needs to be the convener but also the unifier.”
One key area of the Chamber’s advocacy efforts is early childhood education, which addresses a significant barrier to women’s workforce participation. “Notably, in 2022, the Chamber’s board unanimously agreed to formally endorse—for the first time—an early education millage, which subsequently passed in April of that year,” Lombana Lindquist says.
According to Aaron, the 5 mil property tax was designed to raise $21.3 million in the first year (to be doubled by the state’s matching fund). The tax went into effect in 2023 (and runs for 20 years, expiring in 2042), providing early childhood education to 2,000 children from low-income households annually. The tax is dedicated to programs and capital investments that provide educational opportunities for children who have not yet
entered kindergarten.
“The children of today will be the employees of tomorrow,” Aaron says. “By investing in early childhood education through well designed childcare programs, communities equip their youngest members with the skills and abilities necessary to thrive in the knowledge-based economy of the world we live in.”
In 2023, the Chamber also became a member of the Ready Louisiana Coalition, a bipartisan, statewide coalition of businesses, advocacy organizations, early care and education professionals, parents and citizens seeking sufficient investment in quality, affordable early care and education in Louisiana. This initiative resulted in the largest investment of state dollars in more than a decade—$44 million—into the Child Care Assistance Program.
“In 2024, we were sponsors of Early Ed Day at the Capitol to advocate for the restoration of $15 million to $24 million that was cut from the Child Care Assistance Program (CCAP), which saves at least 1,200 of 2,000 seats [in child-care programs] that could have been lost,” says Ashley Hilsman, Executive Vice President at the Chamber. “The state will invest approximately $78 million for CCAP in the next fiscal year. With 33 percent of children in poverty in Orleans Parish, the highest number in the state, this is a crucial issue that must be addressed in order to add bodies to
our workforce.”
The Chamber also actively supports legislation that benefits the local community. For example, the NOCC signed onto the Louisiana Association of Chamber of Commerce Executives’ letter supporting S.3829 (the LNG Security Act), outlining regulations and procedures for exporting liquefied natural gas.
NOCC also sent a letter of support to U.S. Senators Bill Cassidy and John Kennedy for S.3565 (the Affordable Connectivity Program Extension Act), which helps eligible low-income households receive discounted internet service. “Currently, 558,000 households in Louisiana are enrolled in this program, with Orleans Parish having a poverty rate of nearly 20 percent,” Lombana Lindquist says. “Supporting our residents in Orleans Parish is crucial to ensuring they have the necessary resource to prosper.”
In early 2023, the NOCC also met with New Orleans Police Department (NOPD) Interim Police Chief, Michelle Woodfork, and, most recently, the new Police Chief, Anne Kirkpatrick. “We as the business community pledged our support to both,” Lombana Lindquist says. “Earlier this year, the Chamber partnered with Ballard Brands to distribute $10,000 in PJ’s Coffee gift cards to every officer of the New Orleans Police Department. Retention and recruitment of our NOPD
is important.”
Meanwhile, the Chamber also has hosted events aimed to increase advocacy for the business community. The NOCC hosted an inaugural reception at Washington Mardi Gras in January 2024. “More than 100 patrons and visitors attended, including U.S. Congressman Troy Carter, Senator Bill Cassidy and Lt. Gov. Billy Nungesser,” Hilsman says. “And, at the New Orleans Chamber’s second annual Welcome Reception, over 300 patrons and elected officials gathered to foster region-wide collaboration and to celebrate Louisiana culture. This event more than doubled in size from the previous year and tripled in revenue from sponsorships, establishing a valuable non-dues revenue source
for the Chamber.”
In response to feedback from NOCC’s annual investors who expressed a desire for increased state-level advocacy, the NOCC hosted its inaugural New Orleans Chamber Day at the Louisiana State Capitol in May 2024. Hosted by Senator Royce Duplessis, the event featured presentations from Secretary of State Nancy Landry, Treasurer John Fleming and representatives from the offices of the governor, the lieutenant governor, the attorney general and the insurance commissioner, who provided updates from their offices during lunch. More than 22 members from the Chamber participated.
In addition to offering an opportunity to engage with local senators, representatives and members of the state’s executive branch, the event resulted in resolutions by both the House and the Senate designating April 10, 2024 as the New Orleans Chamber of Commerce Day at the Capitol. NOCC will host the event again at the beginning of the legislative session, in mid-April 2025.
“The New Orleans Chamber Day at the legislature was important because it signaled to legislators and policy makers that the Chamber is going to be more involved and representative of the New Orleans business community with regards to proposed legislations and policies,” says Paige Sensenbrenner, who has served as Government Affairs Committee Co-Chair at the NOCC for the past six years. “When any group—especially an organization with more than 1,000 members—shows up at the legislature, elected officials realize that they should
pay attention.”
The NOCC will continue to work with its partners in economic development and tourism (such as GNO, Inc., New Orleans & Company, NOLA Business Alliance and the Downtown Development District), plus fellow chambers and economic development organizations throughout Louisiana, to make New Orleans a better place to live and work.
