Event Recap for the 2021 Partners Forum: Economic Recovery & Political Outlook

On June 24, the Raleigh Chamber Government Affairs department hosted its final virtual event. The Partners Forum: Economic Recovery & Political Outlook included remarks from well-known speakers including Tom Barkin, president and CEO of the US Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond and Neil Bradley, executive vice president, chief policy officer and head of strategic advocacy at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. The panel included Becki Gray, senior vice president of the John Locke Foundation, Rob Schofield, director of NC Policy Watch, and Joe Stewart, vice president of government affairs for the independent Insurance Agents of North Carolina.

Tom Barkin focused his talking points on on inflation and how the economy has struggled as a result of the pandemic. He discussed how behaviors during the pandemic, such as lack of spending, isolation, supply chain demands, and the closing of businesses resulted in the rise and fall of inflation over the past year. He believes we are in a temporary adjustment cycle, in which workers will return to the workplace, children will return to schools and fiscal payments will eventually retire. He projected our near term inflation pressure to ease as we go into the fourth quarter. Tom’s remarks were followed with by a discussion with our president and CEO, Adrienne Cole. Tom and Adrienne discussed job security, wage disparities, workforce development, and talent pipelines.

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Neil Bradley gave his insight on today’s economy from a public policy perspective. He focused on congressional issues stemming directly from Capitol Hill such as; workforce shortage, right-sizing unemployment benefits, immigration, and federal spending. Neil stated that he believed our 2022 economy would be stronger than ever as a result of the “Great Resurgence”. The panel discussed top legislative issues affecting our state. Our panelists addressed North Carolina’s current state on government spending, education access, healthcare access, and workforce development.​

Make sure to save-the-date for our next event - the State of the City, County & Schools on July 22. This in-person event will be a great opportunity to hear priorities and policies from the following representatives: Mayor of the City of Raleigh, Chair of the Wake County Board of Commissioners, and Chair of the Wake County Board of Education.

You can register on our website. We hope to see you on July 22 at 11:30 a.m. ​