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Policy Priorities

Working to address issues that affect the region’s economic health and quality of life.

Policy Priorities

Working to address issues that affect the region’s economic health and quality of life.

The Leadership Group’s policy priorities have always reflected the core values of our membership, and their desire to keep Silicon Valley the very heart of the Innovation Economy. In order to achieve that, our member employers need to be able to attract and keep skilled, technical employees, and the greater Bay Area has to be a good place to live, work and play.

To that end, the Leadership Group has spent nearly fifty years assessing and promoting legislation, programs and initiatives that best serve Silicon Valley, the Bay Area and the nation. We have worked on affordable housing, expanding BART, education, improving infrastructure for electric vehicles, improving access to healthcare, and helped teachers improve their skills and purchase homes, and much more. We are committed to our members and the communities we all serve, and will continue to work on the best way forward for all of us.

Policy Areas

Education & Workforce

Climate & Energy

Housing, Health & Transportation

Racial Justice & Equity

Technology & Innovation

Economic Development

Education & Workforce

The Workforce policy team is focused primarily on education. We are currently focused on diversifying the STEM pipeline, TK-12 education quality, and strengthening education-industry partnerships to champion workforce development at the college level.

Climate & Energy

The Climate & Energy team’s portfolio involves a number of interconnected issues. We work to advance policy, financing and programs that reduce climate pollution, ensure water supply reliability and quality and promote regional climate resilience. We also promote technologies, practices and funding streams that support a safer, smarter, more resilient, reliable and greener gas and electric grid. That includes support for greentech, zero-emission vehicles, and the infrastructure to support them.

Housing, Health & Transportation

The Housing, Health & Transportation team covers a wide range of topics that will ultimately serve to improve the communities in which we live, work and play. Our focus includes advocating for the development of affordable housing along established and upcoming transit routes, engaging with local zoning and planning boards, advocating on the state and federal level to secure funding for BART Phase II, supporting FASTER Bay Area, which would tie together transit across nine counties to create one transit system in the area. The team also works on increasing actress to healthcare, by supporting more autonomy for nurse practitioners, access to telehealth services and increasing awareness of and funding to mental health services.

Racial Justice & Equity

The Racial Justice & Equity team is advocating on issues of diversity, equity and inclusion, the lack of which is most acutely felt in Black and Brown communities. We believe that these policy changes cannot only be directed at Law Enforcement, but ought to be extended into the technology, business and private sectors. To that end, we have advocated on both state and federal legislation that address some issues in Law Enforcement but also in the boardroom. In January 2021 we launched an initiative called 25x25 to encourage our members to have 25% of their management teams staffed by members of underrepresented communities by 20205.

Technology & Innovation

The Technology & Innovation team advocated for policies, projects and funding which support our next generation of innovation and technology. We are working with and educating state and federal legislators on important advances being made in cybersecurity, automated vehicles, funding for early-stage research, artificial intelligence, and data privacy. We are working on the federal level to streamline some of the issues with H1B Visas, DACA and other programs that help our members recruit and retain the best minds in the business.

Economic Development

The Economic Development team advocated for tax policy that is modern and locally, nationally and internationally competitive. We are working on promoting a local tax system that is reasonable, directed and not unduly large. We oppose split roll ballot measures and taxation of business to business services.