TOP STATE DEPARTMENT LEADER MEETS WITH COUNCIL MEMBERS

Under Secretary of State for Economic Growth, Energy and the Environment Catherine Novelli met with leaders of the Bay Area Council this week (May 4) at a luncheon hosted by Executive Committee member Robert James, Partner at Pillsbury Winthrop Pittman Shaw. Novelli knows the Bay Area well, as the former Vice President, Worldwide Government Affairs at Apple, Inc. She’s also the former Assistant U.S. Trade Representative for Europe and the Mediterranean. So, of course, a primary topic was pending Congressional approval of Trade Promotion Authority (TPA), in order to facilitate review and adoption on a simple majority vote of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), and the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP). Six of our region’s top 15 trading partners (Japan, Singapore, Malaysia, Australia, Canada and Chile) are TPP members. Bay Area Council President and CEO Jim Wunderman announced the Council’s endorsement of TPA at the event and shared with Novelli a letter to Congress urging its adoption.

The Council’s next advocacy trip to Washington, D.C. is set for July 28 – 30. For more information or to register for the trip, please contact Communications Manager Virginia Dawson.

To engage with the Council’s federal agenda activities, contact Senior Advisor George Broder.