The U.S. Chamber of Commerce and Council of State Chambers (COSC) today announced the creation of a joint task force to support and coordinate the federal and state approaches to reopening the national economy. As our nation’s leaders begin to carefully consider restarting the national economy, the joint chamber task force will help ensure greater collaboration between the business community and government at the federal and state levels.
“Unprecedented coordination between business and government is needed to map how we can begin a gradual reopening of American businesses,” U.S. Chamber President Suzanne Clark said. “It is critical that states, local governments, and business sectors learn from one another on the best ways to prudently reopen the economy — and this new task force is key to achieving that goal.”
The task force will include representatives from all 50 states, mirroring the coordination between the governors and the federal government. The U.S. Chamber will work with the task force to help address federal issues and will work with COSC to monitor and coordinate best practices at the state and local levels.
“We’re all in this together and by joining forces we will help America recover the right way, and we’ll be uniting business for good,” said Mark Wilson, chair of the Council of State Chambers and president and CEO of the Florida Chamber of Commerce. “It’s very clear that many of us are, or have, launched state-specific restart and recovery plans and this task force will accelerate the efficient and important exchange of information between local, state, and national leaders.”
The task force will convene weekly to address concerns, share best practices, and make unified recommendations. Members of the task force will be asked to seek feedback from local business and community leaders and share that information with other key stakeholders.
To facilitate a phased reopening of the economy, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation has started Path Forward, a new program featuring expert-led discussions hosted by Suzanne Clark. The series is designed to help business and community leaders find the answers they need to develop a responsible reopening strategy.
Path Forwardevents take place at 3 p.m. EST every Monday and Thursday. Register here.
