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HomeNewsArchivesChamber Meets With U.S. Senate Committee Staffers

Chamber Meets With U.S. Senate Committee Staffers

June 6, 2005 – The St. Croix Chamber of Commerce met last week with Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee Majority lead staff member, Joshua Johnson and Minority/Democratic staff member, Al Stayman to discuss EDC issues pertaining to territory that are pending before the Congress. This committee has oversight jurisdiction on affairs affecting the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Also present at the meeting were representatives of The Office of the Delegate to Congress, Designated Services EDC companies, The Human Resources Association of St. Croix and other stakeholders.
"There was a very dynamic exchange of information during our meeting," said Benjamin Rivera, Jr. the Chamber's executive director. "Messrs. Johnson and Stayman were here to collect information on the present and potential future economic impact of the EDC regulations that were recently proposed by the Treasury. In turn, Rivera said, they provided valuable insight and perspective on this issue and the manner in which it was being considered by various federal stakeholder entities."
The St. Croix Chamber of Commerce has launched several new initiatives to assist in EDC advocacy issues including the newly formed Chamber Interior and Chamber Treasury committees. These committees are comprised of Chamber members, EDC beneficiaries, community organizations and other stakeholders. The Chamber, through these committees, will be launching a series of informational releases in an effort to increase awareness on the subject and expedite the exchange of information between all shareholders.
According to Rivera, "The potential loss of the EDC program could have devastating economic effects in all aspects of commerce in this Territory. As the primary business advocacy organizations for our Territory, both Chambers of Commerce must work together to exhaust every effort to ensure that our entire community is protected. We have had positive discussions with the St. Thomas/St. John Chamber regarding these issues and we look forward to a strong partnership going forward to coordinate our efforts and exchange information and ideas," Rivera concluded.

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