Lobby Day continues to pay dividends for GMA and its members

By Andrew Aho

Lobby Day efforts are producing positive results for GMA and GMA members.

GMA members that participate in the GMA lobby days are establishing invaluable relationships with their congressional delegations. These relationships help support key industry legislative initiatives in transportation, waste disposal, and water resources. The Lobby Day visit also provides companies with a connection to congressional offices that can be beneficial should issues arise that require help at the congressional level.

Crown Resources in Toccoa, Ga. established a connection with U.S. Rep. Paul Broun (R-Ga.) during the GMA Lobby Day in September of last year. Not only did officials from Crown Resources have an opportunity to speak directly with Congressman Broun about the specifics of their business, they also took the opportunity to invite the him to their Georgia facilities. Last March, Crown officials hosted Congressman Broun on a tour of their new plant and received local media coverage, as well as recognition in the geosynthetics media.

CETCO leadership attended GMA Lobby Day in March 2012 and developed a good relationship with U.S. Rep. Joe Walsh (R-Ill.). They followed up that meeting up by hosting Congressman Walsh at their headquarters in Hoffman Estates in June. CETCO officials were able to discuss energy issues with Congressman Walsh, demonstrate the breadth of products they produce, and treated their employees to a “town hall” meeting with Congressman Walsh that included a robust Q-and-A session that covered a broad number of issue important to the CETCO employees.

The next GMA Lobby Day will be Sept. 12–13 in Washington, D.C. The activities will begin with a GMA dinner on Sept. 12. The dinner will feature a political and legislative briefing by GMA lobbyists and a presentation by our guest speaker, Jay Hansen, executive vice president of the National Asphalt Pavement Association (NAPA). He will speak about the paving industry outlook. GMA members will participate in congressional visits on Sept. 13.

For more information regarding Lobby Day, contact Andrew Aho.

Andrew Aho is the managing director of the Geosynthetic Materials Association (GMA).