By Ashlynn Bouldin, Coordinator, Communications & Marketing
Estimated reading time: 2 minutes
The North Texas business community stood proud together in Capitol Hill Tuesday, April 14, through Thursday, April 16, during the Dallas Regional Chamber, Fort Worth Chamber, Greater Arlington Chamber of Commerce and Plano Chamber of Commerce’s joint D.C. Fly-In, presented by Fidelity Investments.
Divided into tracks, 77 business leaders representing 47 different organizations spread throughout the Capitol to meet with 16 different members of Congress and advocate for policies that strengthen North Texas’ economic prosperity and continued growth.
“Washington notices when a region shows up unified,” said DRC President and CEO Brad Cheves. “It notices when our message isn’t coming from one voice, but from many—from manufacturers and financial services firms, from large employers and small businesses—from the entire Dallas-Fort Worth region.”
And Washington did just that—noticed. North Texas’ myriad of voices were heard through:
- Meetings with both Texas Senators, Sen. John Cornyn and Sen. Ted Cruz
- 25 congressional meetings with the North Texas delegation and senior Texas representatives
- Meetings with the Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Department of Labor
“There is no substitute for being in the room—for sitting across from your legislators and having a direct, honest conversation about what matters to your business and your community,” said Scott Orr, Senior Vice President and Head of Regional Public Affairs at Fidelity Investments.
Discussions with members of Congress focused on some of the most pressing issues facing North Texas today, with business leaders advocating for infrastructure investments, technological innovations and early education and workforce resources.
“[North Texas’] workforce and the communities that support it deserve leaders who show up in Washington and advocate on their behalf,” said Robert Head, Senior Vice President at Lockheed Martin Government Affairs.
And regional business leaders delivered, promoting the reformation of federal permitting processes so that the critical infrastructure North Texas’ businesses and communities depend on—roads, transit, water systems, energy and broadband—can undergo necessary development. Leaders urged the Senate to advance meaningful, bipartisan permitting reform, which would remove unnecessary regulatory barriers and streamline environmental and permitting reviews.
Leaders also urged lawmakers to explore solutions to mitigate child care challenges, which create barriers to workforce participation for parents of young children. Attendees promoted funding for the Child Care & Development Block Grant and continued support for employer child care incentives, including the enhanced Employer-Provided Childcare Tax Credit provided by the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
DFW is one of the fastest-growing metropolitan areas in the nation, with over 8.4 million residents, but the region’s scale and industry diversity do not hinder its business leaders’ cooperation. The North Texas business community stood strong together in Washington this April, urging members of congress to support the decisions that build a brighter future for the region.
As Amanda Rockow, Vice President of Government Relations at the University of Texas at Dallas, emphasized, “we are so much more powerful in DFW when we figure out how to harness our collective strengths.”
To learn more about the DRC’s Public Policy work, visit our website. To inquire about joining future advocacy trips to Austin and D.C., contact publicpolicy@dallaschamber.org.