Greater Pittsburgh Chamber Of Commerce

ADVOCACY TO IMPROVE THE BUSINESS CLIMATE AND QUALITY OF LIFE IN SOUTHWESTERN PENNSYLVANIA.

WE WORKED TO UNLOCK THE REGION'S POTENTIAL BY IMPROVING COMPETITIVENESS, REMOVING POLICY BARRIERS AND SECURING TRANSFORMATIVE PUBLIC SECTOR INVESTMENT.THROUGH OUR ADVOCACY EFFORTS, WE DELIVERED ON SEVERAL PRIORITIES IN 2023. THESE INCLUDED:(CONTINUED ON SCHEDULE O)WE IMPROVED BUSINESS COMPETITIVENESS BY REMOVING BARRIERS AND CREATING A MORE BUSINESS FRIENDLY CLIMATE.WE SUCCESSFULLY ADVOCATED FOR THE PHASE DOWN OF THE CORPORATE NET INCOME (CNI) TAX, RESULTING FROM PASSAGE OF ACT 53 OF 2022. THE MEASURE REDUCED PENNSYLVANIA'S 9.99% CNI TAX IMMEDIATELY TO 8.9% AND WILL CONTINUE TO LOWER THE RATE OVER TIME UNTIL IT IS CUT IN HALF TO 4.9%, REMOVING A FLASHING RED LIGHT DISCOURAGING BUSINESS INVESTMENT. WE CONTINUE TO ADVOCATE FOR A MORE RAPID PHASE DOWN AND A HIGHER NET OPERATING LOSS CARRYFORWARD LIMIT TO BE MORE COMPETITIVE WITH OTHER STATES.WE SUCCESSFULLY ADVOCATED FOR AND HELPED TO SECURE IMPROVEMENTS IN THE PERMITTING PROCESS AT THE STATE LEVEL, SUPPORTING THE SHAPIRO ADMINISTRATION'S EXECUTIVE ORDER TO INCREASE EFFICIENCY IN PENNSYLVANIA'S PERMITTING, LICENSING AND CERTIFICATIONS, AND WE ADVOCATED ON BEHALF OF SIMILAR IMPROVEMENTS AT THE COUNTY AND CITY LEVEL.WE PARTNERED WITH THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE OF GREATER PHILADELPHIA TO ADVOCATE ON BEHALF OF A STATEWIDE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY COUPLED WITH MORE ROBUST AND FASTER, FLEXIBLE STATEWIDE FUNDING TO SUPPORT AND GROW PENNSYLVANIA'S EXISTING ASSETS TO COMPETE WITH OTHER STATES BETTER.WE SUCCESSFULLY ADVOCATED FOR AND HELPED TO SECURE MORE THAN $1 BILLION FROM THE INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTMENT AND JOBS ACT.WE ORGANIZED A UNIFIED REGIONAL APPROACH, ONE REGION. ONE VOICE., TO SECURE PASSAGE OF THE $1.2 TRILLION INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTMENT AND JOBS ACT AND HELPED SECURE MORE THAN $1 BILLION IN FEDERAL AND STATE INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTMENT FOR REGIONAL PROJECTS, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO: $857 MILLION, MONTGOMERY LOCKS AND DAM. $77 MILLION, EMSWORTH LOCK AND DAM. $11.3 MILLION, HILL DISTRICT CENTER AVENUE RECONSTRUCTION. $565,000, EAST BUSWAY EXPANSION PLANNING GRANT. $142.3 MILLION, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION GRANT FOR THE EASTERN PITTSBURGH MULTIMODAL CORRIDOR PROJECT.WE BUILT OUT KEY CLUSTERS TO GROW THE ECONOMY, CREATE JOBS AND DRIVE REGIONAL COMPETITIVENESS:AUTONOMY/ROBOTICS:IN 2023, UNDER THE SOUTHWESTERN PENNSYLVANIA NEW ECONOMY COLLABORATIVE, WE EFFECTIVELY ADVANCED THE IMPLEMENTATION OF A $62.7 MILLION FEDERAL BUILD BACK BETTER REGIONAL CHALLENGE GRANT, SECURED IN LATE 2022. THIS GRANT AIMS TO ESTABLISH A ROBOTICS AND AUTONOMY CLUSTER SPANNING 11 COUNTIES. OUR PROGRAM FOCUSES ON THREE KEY AREAS: ACCELERATING AUTONOMOUS TECHNOLOGY ADOPTION, UPSKILLING THE REGIONAL WORKFORCE FOR EMERGING JOBS AND FOSTERING THE COMMERCIALIZATION OF INNOVATIVE AUTONOMOUS TECHNOLOGIES. KEY ACHIEVEMENTS IN 2023 INCLUDE:SMALL AND MEDIUM ENTERPRISES (SME) ROBOTICS ADOPTION, LED BY CATALYST CONNECTION: SUCCESSFULLY CONDUCTED OVER 100 ASSESSMENTS FOR SMALL AND MEDIUM-SIZED BUSINESSES TO EXPEDITE TECHNOLOGY ADOPTION, LEADING A SIGNIFICANT NUMBER TO PROJECT AND FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE STAGES.ROBOTICS MANUFACTURING HUB, LED BY THE ADVANCED ROBOTICS FOR MANUFACTURING INSTITUTE: FULLY OPERATIONALIZED DE-RISKING CELLS AT ITS MILL 19 SITE, INITIATING COLLABORATIONS WITH SMALL AND MEDIUM-SIZED MANUFACTURERS. ADDITIONALLY, ITS INNOVATION ACCELERATOR SITES ARE NOW ACTIVE IN ALLEGHENY, ARMSTRONG, INDIANA AND WESTMORELAND COUNTIES.EXPANDED PATHWAYS TO NEW ECONOMY CAREERS, LED BY SOUTHWESTERN PENNSYLVANIA COMMISSION: ACTIVELY ENROLLED STUDENTS, PREPARING THEM FOR NEW CAREER OPPORTUNITIES IN THE SECTOR THROUGH WORKFORCE-LED INITIATIVES WITH MORE THAN 20 REGIONAL PARTNERS. PITTSBURGH ROBOTIC NETWORK'S DISCOVERY DAY ENGAGED OVER 3,000 PARTICIPANTS, ENHANCING AWARENESS ABOUT LOCAL ECOSYSTEM AND CAREER OPPORTUNITIES.THE ROBOTICS FACTORY, LED BY INNOVATION WORKS: LAUNCHED SUCCESSFULLY. THE INAUGURAL AVIATION & ROBOTICS SUMMIT WAS ATTENDED BY APPROXIMATELY 300 GUESTS, INCLUDING PENNSYLVANIA GOVERNOR JOSH SHAPIRO. THE EVENT FACILITATED PARTNERSHIPS BETWEEN MAJOR GLOBAL AIRLINES AND LOCAL ROBOTICS FIRMS. THE ACCELERATE PROGRAM PROVIDED EXTENSIVE SUPPORT TO SIX STARTUPS, INCLUDING CUSTOMIZED MENTORSHIP, SKILL-BUILDING WORKSHOPS AND NETWORKING OPPORTUNITIES.EXPANDED PATHWAYS TO ENTREPRENEURSHIP, LED BY INNOVATEPGH: LAUNCHED TRAINING AND MARKET ACCESS FOR ENTREPRENEURS (TMACE) TO CREATE A SUPPLIER DIRECTORY FOR ROBOTICS, AUTOMATION AND AI INDUSTRIES. THE PEER FELLOWSHIP COMMENCED WITH FIVE FELLOWS, ENHANCING THEIR INTEGRATION INTO THE LOCAL ECOSYSTEM AND SETTING A FOUNDATION FOR FUTURE GROWTH.ENERGY:OUR ENERGY TASK FORCE DEVELOPED AND RELEASED "OUR REGION'S ENERGY FUTURE: A STRATEGY FOR ACCELERATING DECARBONIZATION, INVESTMENT AND INCLUSIVE GROWTH IN THE PITTSBURGH REGION" IN 2022. OVER THE PAST TWO YEARS, WE'VE PARTNERED ACROSS SECTORS TO SUPPORT TRANSFORMATIONAL DEVELOPMENTS ACROSS THE SIX PILLARS OF THE INTEGRATED STRATEGY.STAKEHOLDER EDUCATION AND SUPPORT, INCLUDING THE LAUNCH OF THE SOUTHWESTERN PENNSYLVANIA (SWPA) DECARBONIZATION FORUM AND TWO SPECIAL ENERGY TASK FORCES, SUPPORTING FIRST MOVERS, ENCOURAGING COMPETITIVE STATUTES, POLICIES AND RELATIONS AT LOCAL, STATE AND FEDERAL LEVELS AND SEEKING GOVERNMENT INVESTMENT.RAISING THE PROFILE OF OUR REGION FOR ENERGY INVESTMENT, IN 2022, WE CO-HOSTED THE GLOBAL CLEAN ENERGY ACTION FORUM WITH CARNEGIE MELLON UNIVERSITY, WHICH BROUGHT MORE THAN 6,000 VISITORS FROM 32 COUNTRIES TO PITTSBURGH FOR A GLOBAL CONVERSATION ABOUT THE FUTURE OF ENERGY. THE EFFORT YIELDED NEARLY 100 PIECES OF MEDIA COVERAGE REFERENCING PITTSBURGH AS THE HOST CITY.