2009 Business Agenda

The mission of the Maryland Chamber of Commerce is to maximize opportunities for its members and their employees to grow and prosper. By working with the Administration and the General Assembly, the Chamber seeks to make Maryland an even better place to live, work and do business.

The current state of the economy presents extraordinary challenges for Maryland businesses. Therefore, to retain jobs in our state, the Maryland Chamber’s priorities for the 2009 Session are to:

• Seek a competitive tax structure;
• Promote affordable health insurance;
• Protect the economic vitality of the state’s transportation system;
• Limit unnecessary workplace regulation;
• Defend civil liability laws;
• Balance environmental law and regulation; and
• Support education funding.

Seek a Competitive Tax Structure

Taxes are an important factor in the cost of doing business. While a competitive and fair tax system will stimulate economic growth and job creation, disproportionate tax burdens will cost the state jobs. It is also important to businesses that Maryland’s tax system be stable and predictable, and that major changes only be adopted after careful analysis and public debate. The Maryland Chamber recommends that:

• The Maryland Business Tax Reform Commission review and evaluate the state’s current business tax structure;
• The General Assembly not authorize local governments to impose discriminatory levels of taxation on businesses;
• Maryland tax authorities maintain the confidentiality of taxpayers’ tax information; and
• The Governor and General Assembly resist spending mandates that are unfunded or will create pressure for higher taxes.

Promote Affordable Health Insurance

Access to affordable health insurance in a competitive marketplace is necessary for a healthy workforce. Individuals, businesses, and state government each have a role to play if we are to reduce the number of uninsured in Maryland.

As with other types of insurance, the purchase of health insurance is ultimately an individual’s responsibility. Individuals who can afford to purchase health insurance should be encouraged to do so. Employers should assist employees in obtaining health insurance on a pre-tax basis, but the mix of salary and benefits must remain an employer’s choice. The role of state government should be to:

• Help individuals who truly cannot afford to purchase health insurance;
• Promote a competitive, affordable health insurance environment where health insurance plan design is driven by the marketplace; and
• Respect federal ERISA law, which allows employers to design, and decide their level of participation in, health benefit plans.

Most small employers cannot afford to offer health insurance. This problem is made worse by state laws governing the small group health insurance plan that provide no incentives for cost containment, limit plan design flexibility, and require among the highest number of mandated health benefits in the country. If the small group plan is to succeed, the Maryland General Assembly must:

• Broaden the rating bands;
• Incorporate rating factors that will encourage cost containment; and
• Attract low risk participants to strengthen the pool.

Protect the Economic Vitality of the State’s Transportation System

Maryland’s transportation network is the lifeblood of our economy. Every day, Marylanders use the state’s transportation network to get to and from work. The business community relies on an effective, efficient, and reliable transportation network to provide goods and services.

New transportation revenues resulting from the 2007 special session of the General Assembly, revenue reductions in the 2008 regular session, and $1.1 billion (during the six year program period) in subsequent project cuts resulted in an estimated net $265 million increase to the Transportation Trust Fund. This amount is grossly insufficient to sustain system preservation needs, much less to gain ground in addressing Maryland’s $40 billion backlog of transportation projects.

Since the preservation of existing transportation dollars is essential to meeting Maryland’s Transportation needs, the Maryland Chamber ardently opposes any transfers from the Transportation Trust Fund. The Maryland Chamber also supports additional legislative protections to assure the integrity of the Transportation Trust Fund.

Recognizing the current economic climate, the Maryland Chamber supports and encourages state government to:

• In light of current underfunding for documented transportation needs, maintain the integrity and financial health of the Transportation Trust Fund;
• Provide funds for road, highway, transit, port, airport, and rail projects to meet the needs of Maryland’s transportation network;
• Work with the Maryland Chamber to secure new federal funding for transportation that will benefit the state—regardless of mode;
• Operate the Maryland Department of Transportation in the most cost-effective manner possible and maximize operating efficiency;
• Support the Maryland Department of Transportation’s mission to ensure transportation system safety and system preservation; and
• Encourage the legislature to seek additional funding streams for mass transit operating expenses.

Appropriate improvements to Maryland’s transportation system will enhance Maryland’s competitiveness, as well as preserve and create jobs.

Limit Unnecessary Workplace Regulation
Maryland possesses the most highly educated workforce in the U.S., which is reflected in the high income level of the state. Salaries and benefits provided by employers are used in a competitive marketplace to attract and retain talented employees. Government mandated "one-size fits all" employment policies impede an employer's ability to provide competitive incentives that meet the specialized needs of a particular employee demographic, as well as the demands of an ever-changing economic climate. Therefore, the Maryland Chamber and its members caution the General Assembly to avoid regulation of employment practices that fail to balance the needs and obligations of employers and employees, and discourage entrepreneurship. The Maryland Chamber will:

• Continue to offer its leadership and expertise in workers compensation issues;
• Continue to help ensure the fiscal soundness, benefit integrity and administrative effectiveness of Maryland’s Unemployment Insurance programs;
• Preserve employers' ability to manage their workforce and construct employment wage and benefit policies that are tailored to best suit the needs of its employees; and
• Continue to support mechanisms to ensure fair and just employment practices.

Defend Civil Liability Laws

The ability of a company to receive fair treatment from a state’s legal system influences business decisions regarding job creation and business location. Efforts to expand business liability by creating new causes of action to sue businesses or increase business liability costs will drive jobs out of the state, and must be resisted. The Maryland Chamber:

• Opposes legislation that would provide for tort liability based on comparative fault, market share liability, or weakened standards for the award of punitive damages;
• Opposes “false claims” legislation that would increase lawsuits against health care providers and other government contractors;
• Opposes legislation that would alter existing provisions of the civil liability system such as extending filing deadlines and statutes of limitations or awarding of attorney’s fees;
• Supports meaningful reforms to civil liability law that will help reduce defensive medicine and moderate medical liability insurance rates; and
• Supports jury service reforms that will promote more representative juries.

Balance Environmental Law and Regulation

The Maryland Chamber ardently supports public policy that balances environmental issues with economic considerations. Environmental stewardship requires responsibility and accountability. Therefore, the Maryland Chamber, its members and their employees are committed to fostering a healthy and sustainable environment, while continuing to promote increased job and business investment opportunities.

In 2009, the Maryland Chamber will work with other business and environmental organizations to collectively advocate:

• Practical, reasonable, achievable, and financially viable energy conservation/reduction measures;
• Sound policies for reliable and competitively priced energy generation, transmission and distribution facilities, including nuclear, natural gas, clean coal and renewable energy sources;
• Incentives as a primary tool to promote “green” business operations and construction; and
• Concentration of state efforts and resources in support of a comprehensive energy, climate change, and air quality policy at the national level.

Support Education Funding

The availability of a well-educated workforce is an essential component of Maryland’s economy. The quality of, and access to, high quality primary, secondary, adult and higher education is a vital concern for Maryland’s business community due to its impact on job retention and creation. Meaningful levels of adult education funding are also important to meet unmet demands for job retraining. The level of state support for higher education will determine the need for tuition increases and impact the affordability and quality of higher education in Maryland. The Administration and General Assembly should provide predictable and sustainable funding for adult and higher education in Maryland and assure that slots proceeds remain dedicated primarily to fund education. The education accountability goals set by the state must also be achieved.