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Government Affairs

Chair: Alan Zakin, Alan Zakin Associates

Purpose: To monitor and address legislative and public policy issues at the local, state and federal levels of government as they relate to the interests of business and economic development in Morris County and among Chamber members, and to draft and recommend to the Board positions on such issues to be adopted and promulgated to appropriate government officials, the membership and the public. 

Upcoming Meetings:

The Morris County Chamber Government Affairs Committee meets monthly at 7:30am to discuss current policy and political issues that affect the business community.  At 8:00am we are also joined by members of the Morris ELC, a grass roots affiliate of the NJ Business and Industry Association, where we are joined for breakfast by government leaders who address the group and engage in an informal and lively exchange. 

Activities and Highlights:

The Government Affairs Committee plans:

• The Government Affairs Committee plans:
• Annual Legislative Breakfast where we discuss key government issues that affect business
• Monthly Breakfast meetings in conjunction with the NJ Business & Industry Association where we meet key government officials and review emerging government and political issues
• Policy Position Papers on key government issues that affect the general business community.  Examples of key positions include:

• Opposing Onerous Advance Lay-off Notice Provisions for Employers
• Opposing Mandatory Paid Family Leave for All Businesses with 2 or more Employees
• Opposing Onerous Disclosure Regulations for Non-Profit Organizations

Past speakers have included:

• U.S. Congressman Rodney Frelinghuysen
• U.S. Attorney Chris Christie
• Alan Steinberg, Esq., Regional Administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
• Christine Serrano Glassner, Regional Advocate for the U.S. Small Business Administration
• Republican Senate Leader Leonard Lance
• Republican Assembly Leader Alex DeCroce
• NJ State Senator Joe Doria
• NJ State Senator Tom Kean, Jr.
• NJ State Senator Tony Bucco
• NJ State Assemblyman Upendra Chivukula
• NJ State Assemblyman Joe Cryan
• NJ State Assemblyman Guy Gregg
• NJ State Assemblyman Rick Merkt
• Morris County Freeholder and Former Candidate for Governor, John Murphy
• Morris County Freeholder Director Margaret Nordstrom
• Morris County Freeholder Deputy Director John Inglesino

Committee Members:

Councilman Gary Algeier, Township of Randolph
Michael Alwell, Atlantic Health
Carol Armour, Morris Center YMCA
David Beck, Chiropractic Physician
Gadi Ben-Menachem, Oppenheimer & Company
Paul Boudreau, Paul Boudreau & Associates
Steven Brisgel, Hanover Area Chamber of Commerce
Senator Leanna Brown, Brown Global Enterprises
Lee Campbell, PricewaterhouseCoopers
Lew Candura, Morris County Democratic Committee
Ted Christian, HSBC Bank
John Ciaffone, TransOptions
Patrick DeDeo, William Paterson University
Richard Eastman, Virtual Presence International
Robert Ellis, Institute for Leadership Studies & History
Maria Florio, Employment Horizons
John Harper, Laufer, Knapp, Torzewski & Dalena LLC
William Hutchinson, SMCMUA
Paul Joseph, Hyatt Morristown
Shawn Laurenti, Laurenti Consultants LLC
Wendy Lazarus, Pfizer Inc
James Lynch, Sobel & Company

Andrew McElroy, American Federal Mortgage Corp.

Michelle Mount, AAA New Jersey Automobile Club

Martin Okun, Randolph Services

Tricia Russo, Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corp.
Douglas Sanborn, Delta Dental Plan
John Sette, Morris County Republican Committee

Julie Smolin, AxisPointe Inc.
George Sous, PSE&G
Tom Spiesman, Porzio Bromberg & Newman

Richard Thomas, Celadon Communications Management

Aida Visakay, AxisPointe Inc.
Ed Yaw, County College of Morris
Alan Zakin, Alan Zakin Associates