Mission

The Regional Legislative Alliance of Ventura and Santa Barbara Counties (RLA)is a cooperative council of the leading chambers of commerce and associations in the Santa Barbara and Ventura county region. Recognizing these areas are one geographic and economic community with regional issues common to each chamber and association, the mission of the RLA is to develop policy for the participating members on key federal and state issues.

Through a combined effort, the RLA influences legislation and policy decisions, provides coordination to advance the common business legislative interests of the participating chambers and associations, serves as a public policy advocacy group for the region, and provides leadership in legislative advocacy on state and federal issues that impact the participating members.

The RLA is a strong, unified voice for the business community in the Santa Barbara and Ventura counties, it improves and enhances the business climate, and maintains and supports the economic vitality, social community, and quality of life of this region.

Membership

The partners have memberships that employ more than 300,000 people in the region, and the outreach continues to recruit other chambers and associations in Ventura and Santa Barbara counties. Current Alliance members include: 
  1. Camarillo Chamber of Commerce
  2. Carpinteria Valley Chamber of Commerce
  3. Fillmore Chamber of Commerce
  4. Gold Coast Hispanic Chamber of Commerce
  5. Goleta Valley Chamber of Commerce
  6. Oxnard Chamber of Commerce
  7. Moorpark Chamber of Commerce
  8. Port Hueneme Chamber of Commerce
  9. Santa Paula Chamber of Commerce
  10. Simi Valley Chamber of Commerce
  11. Ventura Chamber of Commerce
  12. Ventura County Economic Development Association (VCEDA)
Capitol Circle Affiliates

  1. Western States Petroleum Association (WSPA)
  2. The Boeing Company


Governance

The Regional Legislative Alliance of Ventura and Santa Barbara Counties is governed by a Memorandum of Understanding and is a joint committee of the participating chambers of commerce and associations. The Regional board of directors is comprised of representatives from the participating chambers of commerce and associations, with a maximum of two representatives from each member organization, one of which must be the CEO or their employed designee. The board has an equal number of chamber and association executives and designated volunteers. This provides all partners equal voting rights regardless of the chamber or association’s membership size. The chamber and association representatives are responsible for disseminating the information to their respective boards and members.The operations of the RLA are managed by the board with the aid of the executive director.

Issues

The RLA is a public policy advocacy group and takes action on appropriate statewide and federal legislation that impacts the business and economic climates of Ventura and Santa Barbara counties. The current critical issues include, but are not limited to:

  • Employment
  • Housing
  • State Governance
  • Infrastructure – including Communications, Transportation, Water and Energy
  • Taxes and Fees on Business
  • Workers Compensation
Origin

A couple of chambers in Ventura County discussed the regional concept as early as 1998. The idea lay dormant until the fall of 2001 when a group of chamber executives from both counties came together to seriously consider the pros and cons of such an alliance. And, from there the Regional Legislative Alliance of Ventura and Santa Barbara Counties began. Today, the RLA has 12 chamber and association members and a growing team of affiliates in our Capitol Circle program.


Benefits to Member Chambers and Associations

The benefits of RLA membership are: (a) a forum for a broader discussion of issues and an organized way to cooperate and collaborate; (b) more clout that can be achieved by a larger constituency; (c) current and accurate information and analysis of key issues; (d) assistance for chamber CEO’s, their staffs and their government affairs committees; and (e) a tool for member recruitment and retention.

More Information

Please visit our website at www.regionalalliance.org.


Nancy Lindholm, Chair of the Regional Legislative Alliance and CEO of the Oxnard Chamber of Commerce at (805) 983-6118 ex. 4 N.Lindholm@OxnardChamber.org.

Lisa Rivas, Executive Director at lmrivas@cox.net or (805) 637-6816.