Home  /  Join   /  Login
Picture
Saginaw MI County Chamber of Commerce | Saginaw County, MI
  • Events
    • Chamber Events
    • YPN Events
    • Community Events
  • Directory
  • Chamber
    • About Us >
      • Board of Directors
      • Staff
      • YPN Steering Committee
      • Ambassadors
      • Diplomats
    • Advocacy >
      • Business Advocate
      • Endorsements >
        • November 2022 Ballot Endorsements
        • November 2020 Ballot Endorsements
        • August 2020 Ballot Endorsements
        • March 2020 Ballot Endorsements
        • 2018 Candidate & Ballot Endorsements >
          • 2018 Ballot Proposals
      • Initiatives >
        • Medicare Multi-Cancer Early Detection Screening
      • Legislative Priorities 2021-22
    • Awards
    • Benefit Partners >
      • Accident Fund
      • Aflac
      • Blue Cross
      • Labor Law Posters
      • Tenurgy
      • Tri-Star 401(k)
    • Contact Us
    • Join the Chamber
    • Leadership Saginaw
    • LivingLocal Program
    • Publications >
      • Annual Report
      • Business Advocate
      • Simply Saginaw
    • Sales Leads Roundtables
    • Sponsorships
    • Videos & Presentations
  • YPN
    • About the YPN
    • Join the YPN
    • Leadership Opportunities
    • Special Offers
    • Sponsors
    • YPN Steering Committee
  • Members
    • Community Events
    • Coupons/Offers
    • Job Bank
    • Login
    • Member News
    • Promote Your Business
    • Ribbon Cuttings >
      • Ribbon Cutting Form
  • Community
    • Economic Development
    • Facts & Figures
    • Saginaw County
    • Relocation Info
    • Saginaw County History
    • Visit Saginaw County
  • Blog

Chamber Supports Creative Economy Recovery - Joins Coalition of Chambers and Americans for the Arts

5/5/2021

 
The Saginaw County Chamber of Commerce is approaching the proposed Infrastructure Bill from an agnostic standpoint.  We are not debating whether the Infrastructure Bill should be passed. Our funding request support is based on IF it is passed. In the case of the following blog, if the Bill passes, we support allocating dollars to help the arts recover in this shaky economy.
The Saginaw County Chamber of Commerce joined a coalition of 113 chambers of commerce in 46 states to deliver a letter to U.S. House and Senate leadership asking that $18 billion be allocated within the forthcoming infrastructure recovery bills specifically to support creative economic recovery. The businesses represented by these chambers collectively serve over 33 million Americans. 

Spearheaded by the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce, the Association of Chamber of Commerce Executives, and Americans for the Arts, the letter asserts that dedicated recovery funds for the creative economy are essential to getting local small businesses and economies back on their feet. The letter was built on two previous letters of support (May 2020, August 2020) for relief and recovery efforts to help the arts, culture, and the creative sector. 
The creative economy is an economic engine that generated $919.7 billion in economic activity in 2019, according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis—a larger percentage of the GDP than transportation, tourism, or construction, and a crucial component of every state’s economic health. While the 2020 CARES Act and the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 provided much-needed relief to many businesses, there are critical gaps in the aid that fail to meet the needs of the creative and cultural economy. A report from the Brookings Institution found that the country’s 670,000 creative economy businesses had collectively lost at least $150 billion by August 2020 (and have continued to lose revenue at the same rate). At the height of the pandemic, 63% of all creative workers were unemployed, and the sector unemployment rate continues to be 5-6 times the national average.

In Michigan, the creative economy is big business and needs federal recovery funding. Before the pandemic, it generated $15.4 billion comprising 2.9% of the gross state product and encompassing 17,394 creative businesses, which employed 122,288 workers. At the height of the pandemic, 53% of creative workers were unemployed in Michigan. Overall, the state’s creative businesses have lost at least $2.4 billion to the pandemic, and 59% of creative workers in Michigan now have no savings with which to jumpstart their own recovery. 

The Saginaw Chamber and other signatory chambers recognize that there can be no full recovery without the creative economy and are calling for Congress to support dedicated recovery funding because they know that creative product drives tourism, travel, hospitality, local small business, and social and economic health. 

The Saginaw Chamber supports the integration of the following core funding and policy recommendations into the forthcoming American Jobs Plan, which echo the Put Creative Workers to Work policy platform endorsed by over 2,300 creative businesses and creative workers in all 50 states:
  • Allocate $14 billion to incentivize local, state, and tribal businesses and governments to put creative workers to work addressing social, cultural, and physical infrastructure needs.  
  • Allocate $3 billion to spark an American cultural renaissance through creative jobs, fellowships, residencies, and commissions. 
  • Allocate $1 billion in arts and creativity-based education for recovery to incentivize retention of arts educators and improve the education infrastructure. 
  • Direct the Federal Reserve to broaden their nonprofit lending facility under the Main Street Lending Program to specifically benefit mid-size nonprofits. 
In addition to Congressional leaders, the letter has been shared with the House and Senate representatives for all signatories and senior leaders in the White House. To support efforts to dedicate funds to creative economic recovery, visit http://www.creativeworkers.net to send a letter to Congressional representatives, share resources on social media, join the growing coalition of partners, and access other resources.


Comments are closed.
    Picture

    Archives

    January 2023
    November 2022
    September 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    March 2022
    October 2021
    August 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    January 2021
    October 2020
    July 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019

Thank you to our Chairman's Circle Sponsors

GOLD LEVEL
Picture
SILVER LEVEL
Picture
Picture
BRONZE LEVEL
CONTACT US
515 N. Washington Ave., 3rd Floor  |  Saginaw, MI  48607
P 989-752-7161  |   info@saginawchamber.org
Office Hours: Monday-Friday  |  8am-4:30pm

Copyright © 2016 Saginaw County Chamber of Commerce.

NAVIGATION

​Home
Contact Us
Sitemap
MemberClicks | Member Management Software