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President's message |
Shaping public policy
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At its spring meeting this year, GCSAA’s board of directors conducted an in-depth review of the association’s government relations and public policy program.
These efforts may be some of the association’s most important, though least recognized and understood. Members responding to this year’s member needs assessment ranked government relations 7.91 in importance on a scale of 10.
The association has steadily built the program over the years, and it is recognized as the entity of influence in the golf industry. Three full-time staff members monitor the federal government, all 50 states and local governments, and are guided by a board-approved annual legislative/regulatory agenda that outlines priorities, along with our official position on each issue. In addition, we monitor and track more than 40 other issues.
GCSAA’s program has two main functions: compliance and advocacy. Our compliance efforts focus on assisting members, chapters and facilities in complying with laws and regulations.
Staff also may serve as ombudsmen for GCSAA members who are dealing with state and federal regulatory agencies. The ombudsman role ensures confidentiality and anonymity when necessary for the member or facility.
Relationship building is a key component of GCSAA’s advocacy efforts, and the association has been particularly successful in building relationships with the EPA. This has resulted in GCSAA’s information being recognized by the EPA as credible.
The association also retains the Washington, D.C., law firm Reed Smith, LLP to perform federal legislative and regulatory work. Benefits for GCSAA include having a visible presence in Washington, developing “champions” in Congress who support the association, advancing GCSAA’s federal legislative/regulatory agenda, ensuring that GCSAA is represented in major federal regulatory actions, and providing counsel to us on legislative and regulatory matters.
With the help of the GCSAA Government Relations Committee and staff, we’ve identified issues we believe will significantly affect the association and its members in the coming years. They include water issues, availability of chemical products, work force availability and impact of weather and climate change on the golf business. While we won’t engage in debate regarding causes of climate change, we will focus on using scientific data regarding environmental practices to address the impact of weather/climate change on the golf industry.
Many of our chapters are effective at addressing government issues, and we want to build on this strength. In 2007, staff will contact 45 chapters that have either expressed a specific desire for GR assistance from GCSAA or indicated on the chapter needs assessment that they could improve their effectiveness in this area.
Finally, look for the 2008 launch of a key contacts program to recruit, train and engage a specific group of members to build personal relationships with lawmakers in order to expand the association’s political strength.
Because these efforts are so important, be assured that GCSAA will use all of its communications vehicles to inform members concerning these vital activities.
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