PR&LA Fall 2018

6  • PENNSYLVANIA RESTAURANT & LODGING matters • Fall 2018 Jim Gratton CHAIRMAN’S MESSAGE OVER THE PAST YEAR, my primary goal has been to raise the awareness of the importance of our industry to the Commonwealth. This starts by ensuring our legislative officials better understand the industry and our priorities. We have always had a strong presence in Harrisburg, but I believe we needed more local engagement. With that in mind, the association implemented Chapter Legislative Roundtables where legislative officials met with members of our association in their districts. We held 12 roundtables throughout the state, which 58 legislators attended, as well as staff members from the Governor’s office and various other legislator offices. I want to thank the almost 300 PRLA members who attended these events as you were extremely valuable in getting our message out. The feedback from legislators has been extremely positive with comments such as: • Excited that the roundtables are being held locally as it is a more relaxed environment and they get to see more constituents. • Appreciated the exposure opportunity to the constituents, and it helped a few legislators who were collecting signatures on petitions. • They noted that most associations don’t do this, and it is such a good idea. In addition, these meetings provided significant benefit to PRLA such as: • We gained additional co-sponsors on some legislative items. • We were able to educate some from the other side of the aisle about the impact of an extreme minimum wage and what an increase in the tipped wage would do to the industry. In fact, one Democrat from Erie even went on the news that night and publicly stated that the hospitality industry needs to be especially considered when considering an increase in the minimum wage. • We received significantly more face time at the roundtables, compared to the 15 minutes or so we get at most legislative meetings in Harrisburg. We also had their full attention the entire time, not to mention several legislators stayed afterwards for the social aspect and took the opportunity to spend extra time with our members. In addition to the roundtables, we held gubernatorial interviews and had another successful Legislative Day in Harrisburg where 160 members attended 115 meetings with their legislators. Of course, all this needs to be an ongoing effort, but I am proud to say I feel PRLA has elevated its efforts in this area. For those that could not attend these events, I look forward to seeing you next year and am very confident you will find it well worth your time. One area that we have started to put more resources towards. but did not quite accomplish as much as I had hoped for, is around public relations. Our industry does so much for the local community and Commonwealth at-large—from jobs to support of our youth to community service to financial prosperity. While we made gains in educating our elected officials, we need to ensure our story is heard by everyone. I would like to see PRLA pursue a dedicated campaign to share with the public the hospitality industry’s importance and necessity. As I end my term, I want to thank everyone for your tremendous support of our association. It has been extremely rewarding to have traveled the state and interacted with so many amazing industry leaders. We have a bright future ahead, especially if we collectively continue to be engaged. We must advocate on behalf of the hospitality industry because if we do not, no one will. • “We have a bright future ahead, especially if we collectively continue to be engaged.”