Economic Development & Business Support

We support policies that encourage and enable businesses to locate, expand, and prosper in our community. These policies must ensure that existing local businesses, diverse startups, and companies of all sizes have access to the resources, opportunities, and workforce needed to innovate and grow sustainably. We believe a strong business community and economy create a thriving community and prosperity for all.

Local policies, tools, and services should be designed to help local companies become more competitive, grow, and thrive where they are rather than relocate. Local government should work collaboratively with the Chamber and other groups in attracting new employers and industries to Sonoma County that can increase local wages and generate new economic growth.

Retail leakage, when residents shop in other North Bay communities, represents a loss of local economic activity and tax revenue. Attracting new and diverse retailers will help retain consumer spending, strengthen the local economy, and increase sales tax revenues that support core services.

We also support state-level legislative changes to modernize point-of-sale tax allocation, particularly related to retail distribution centers, to ensure revenues more accurately reflect where economic activity occurs.

We support:

• Investments in infrastructure that attract businesses, create good paying jobs, and generate sustainable tax revenue
• Prioritization of clean, safe, and well-maintained high-visibility areas to enhance the customer experience, economic environment, and business vitality
• Partnerships to create business accelerators, incubators, and entrepreneurship programs
• Implementation of targeted tax incentives and credits that support job creation, workforce development, and business investment

Numerous economic studies demonstrate that when local governments spend with local businesses, the impact multiplies. Those businesses reinvest in local supply chains which drives economic activity, job creation, and increased tax revenue. Project Labor Agreements limit competition, increase taxpayer costs, and can exclude local workers and businesses from local projects—they constrain innovation, reduce opportunities for small and minority-owned businesses, and undermine a competitive, vibrant economy.

Government should reduce or defer development-related fees, particularly for housing and economic development projects, to offset inflation and rising interest rates and accelerate project delivery. We also support adoption and implementation of state-level initiatives that expand incentives and flexibility for a broader range of housing types, including policies that enable increased density, infill development, and conversion of existing parcels to multi-unit housing.

A free press that covers community issues is a cornerstone of our democracy. A strong local media environment is essential to an informed public, a healthy economy, and a thriving community by supporting the flow of information, encouraging dialogue, and ensuring accountability.

Local journalism is fundamental to effective government and public oversight. Without it, communities face weaker financial oversight of taxpayer dollars, higher borrowing costs, and decreased civic engagement.

We support investments and protections that sustain a strong local journalism presence as a check on government operations and financial management. We also uphold the importance of free speech as a foundational element of democracy and economic prosperity.