Annapolis and Anne Arundel County Chamber

Events

May Mixer at Elements Therapeutic Massage

Thursday May 17, @5:30pm - @7:30pm

Small Business Sounding Board (SB2)

Tuesday June 12, @8:00am - @9:00am

Multi-Chamber Breakfast at The Annapolis Sheraton

Tuesday June 19, @7:30am - @9:30am

News Digest

May 14 2012
Feds approve more BWI upgrades

The Capital - As BWI Thurgood Marshall Airport officials prepare for a $100 million terminal expansion this year, they also have received federal approval for a massive airfield improvement project. Read more ...
May 14 2012
O’Malley wants fast action from Md. gambling work group

Washington Post - In a bid to resolve some of the most difficult gambling issues left over from the last legislative session, Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley (D) said Friday that he would assemble an 11-member work group on casinos to undertake “a fact-driven process, aided by expert analysis.” O’Malley said the group would be charged with making public recommendations by June 20, in preparation for a possible second special session in July devoted to gaming issues. Read more ...

Small Business Digest

April 05 2012
GSA scandal sheds light on small business contracting fraud

Washington Post - Buried in the laundry list of misconduct claims against the General Services Administration is further evidence of what at least one federal official and one trade group call a critical problem for small employers: improper contracting that diverts government spending to large corporations instead of small businesses.

Recent analysis of government data that showed that 72 of the 100 companies receiving the highest amount of federal small business contracts in 2011 were firms that exceeded the Small Business Administration’s size standards for small companies. Read more ...
April 05 2012
What you can learn from Southwest Airlines’ culture

Washington Post - A consciously developed customer-centered culture is a business advantage that will serve you for years — and inoculate you against competitive inroads. Consider for a minute Southwest Airlines and the lengthy list of would-be category killers that have tried to imitate it: United Airlines’ United Shuttle, Continental Airlines’ Continental Lite, Delta’s Delta Express and US Airways’ Metro-Jet.

What did these companies lack: Money? Name recognition? Hardly. They lacked Southwest’s relentless focus on culture, which none of its pop-up competitors was willing to slow down to emulate. And all are now bust. Read more ...

Legislative Digest

May 14 2012
Maryland budget bills outline tax increases

The Capital - The budget package to be adopted during the legislature's special session that starts on Monday will increase the income taxes some residents pay, and will shift some of the cost of teachers' pensions from the states to the counties, according to draft bills the General Assembly posted online on Friday. Read more ...
May 14 2012
Gov. O’Malley touts low taxes as he calls special session to raise them

Maryland Reporter - Maryland has some of the lowest taxes in the country, Gov. Martin O’Malley said Wednesday officially announcing plans to call a special session of the legislature to fix a budget impasse — partially by raising taxes. Read more ...
May 14 2012
Group: Maryland too reliant on income taxes

The Capital - While Gov. Martin O’Malley has touted Maryland’s comparatively low tax burden on its high-income populace, some groups are concerned that the income tax hikes proposed for this week’s General Assembly special session will harm the state’s national rankings on taxes and business climate. Read more ...

Economic Digest

May 14 2012
Anne Arundel economic leaders seeking funding boost

The Capital - County officials hope to devote an additional $1 million toward business recruitment and redevelopment in the upcoming year. Read more ...
April 11 2012
Growth of U.S. labor force is slowing, reports show

Washington Post - The slower growth in the labor force arises from two factors, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. First, the U.S. population is growing more slowly. Second, the percentage of Americans working or seeking work will continue to decline as the population ages. Read more ...
April 11 2012
D.C. region’s unemployment rate fell to 5.5 percent in Feb.

Washington Post - The Washington region’s unemployment rate fell to 5.5 percent in February from a seasonally adjusted 5.6 percent the month before, one of the lowest levels among the nation’s largest metropolitan areas and well below the national jobless rate, according to data released Friday by the Labor Department. Read more ...

Chamber Priorities

The Annapolis and Anne Arundel County Chamber of Commerce, Inc. knows that businesses join the Chamber for many different reasons. When those many reasons are collectively considered, they center on four primary roles which the Chamber of Commerce has adopted as priorities for servicing its membership and the broader community. Those roles are identified below:

Serve as a Strong and Respected Advocate for Business
The Chamber is actively engaged at all levels of government representing the business community on many issues impacting our economy, public education, regulations, land-use, taxes & fees, public infrastructure, healthcare costs, transportation, workforce development, affordable housing and quality of life in our state capital of Annapolis, Anne Arundel County, and Maryland. Our efforts are conducted through focused Chamber committees, which include our Government Matters Committee, Economic Development Committee, Education Committee, and other various task forces.

Serve as an Excellent Resource for Business
The Chamber seeks to be a one-stop resource for its members by providing quality and dependable assistance to businesses seeking access to timely market data, regional economic trend data, best practices, and general business information important to successfully expanding and operating a business in Anne Arundel County, Maryland. The Chamber also offers excellent leadership development opportunities through its committees and community efforts for those businesses who want to provide their employees with hands-on leadership and teamwork experiences.

Expand Business Relationships
The Chamber of Commerce provides extensive opportunities for businesses to connect with each other and promote business development in the region through its advocacy, programming and committee work efforts. These relationships lead to expanded collaborative engagements among executives on business opportunities of mutual interest, as well as an exchange of shared information on the regional marketplace, best practices, and economic conditions.

Promote Business and Corporate Citizenship in the Community
The Chamber of Commerce provides many opportunities for it members to become actively involved in important community initiatives that support civic and charitable programs in our region. These initiatives are supported by the Chamber’s 501c3 Foundation. Business members and their employees who seek to contribute their time, talent and resources for the betterment of the community can find many avenues at the Chamber to pursue their business and corporate citizenship interests.

What are the Chamber of Commerce's values?

The Chamber of Commerce believes that our role as a business organization is to:

Welcome and nurture a diverse membership from all political, ethnic, religious and cultural backgrounds.
Serve as a forum where business executives from various backgrounds can come together and work on real solutions for the opportunities and challenges that face businesses and the community they serve.
Provide unparalleled access to resources important for businesses to grow and succeed.