Regional Policy Development

Secured endorsement from bi-partisan legislators across our nine-county region to work collaboratively with NIA. They continue to express the need for this region wide bi-partisan initiative and the power of working collaborative on key policy initiatives over time. 

Formation of a bi-partisan Policy Committee, chaired by Mayor Tom Dermody and Shaw Friedman, to lead the development of policy positions in advance of each legislative session.  The committee is working with our lobbyist to draft possible policy positions for the 2023 session.  We will engage you in this process in the next few months

Partnered with key regional legislators and the NE Indiana Caucus to secure funding from the governor’s office to fund a PEL study in 2021 and 2022, as the first step upgrading US 30 to interstate status.

State Board and Commission Appointments

Northern Indiana is woefully unrepresented on the highly influential state boards and commissions.  NIA has been given a clear directive from our legislators and members to prioritize this NIA pillar and great progress has been made in 2021 and 2022.

NIA and our legislators have successfully lobbied the Governor’s office to become their go-to organization for identifying, vetting, and submitting candidates to fill open State Board and Commission appointments from our region.  The NIA Board and Commission Committee, Chaired by the South Bend International Airport CEO Mike Daigle, meets with the Governor’s office monthly to identify upcoming board and commission openings.  The committee then reaches out to qualified candidates to gauge their willingness to apply for opening.  

NIA has vetted and submitted ten Board or Commission candidates to the Governor’s office in the past year resulting in four Northern Indiana candidates being appointed to a state board or commission.  The remaining six have been successfully vetted by the Governor’s office and are in the process of being matched for appointment to a board or commission in 2022.

Membership Recruitment

NIA has accomplished the key goal of securing the support of our 37 member legislators.  Our current focus is now on growing membership commitments from to our private sector, chambers, economic development and municipal leaders.   NIA launched a membership program that has led to key influencers agreeing to set up meetings with over 50 regional business and organizational leaders.  Combining our legislator support with broad based membership from our regions key influencers is critical to the success of the NIA initiative.

Strategic Partnerships

NIA has developed a formal partnership with the Northeast Indiana Region’s 27-member legislative delegation (NIA has a 37-member delegation) to partner with NIA on select legislative initiatives in 2022 and beyond  This will allow for a combined 50+ legislators (1/3 of the state total) to speak with a single voice in Indianapolis to drive the prosperity of our region.  

Legislator and member engagement

NIA will convene our legislators, members and prospects for an annual meeting in the 4^th quarter of 2022.  Look for more details in the coming months.