Spring 2021 Report on Business Launch with the Missing Column

This Spring Issue of Report on Business will soon arrive in mailboxes. The pandemic has been a full year now and despite its tumultuous path, life moves on. This issue examines how business and work-life have been impacted and potentially forever changed. The issue also touches on what has been happening at the 67th Legislative Assembly, which is in the final days. In the Missing Column to this issue, GNDC Director of Communications, Amanda Remynse reviewed, through the lens of a 4-year old, the process that GNDC uses to provide wins for business in North Dakota. 

The Missing Column to the Spring Issue: FROM THE MOUTHS OF BABES

Every day I get to drive my daughter to preschool. This is 15 minutes where we chat about our lives and the scenery that we pass by. This is a wonderful time for me as it’s just her and I – no siblings, just her and her 4-year-old musings. Since Legislative Session has begun, the questions have been a little deeper about the Capitol building, which we pass by each day. They started out incredibly innocent. “What do you do there?” “Who goes there?” “Do people live there?” “Do people eat there?” and given these tiny conversations the questions have grown deeper, “What are legislators?” “Why do they get to make the rules?” “How do they know a rule is good?”
 
The increased knowledge is beautiful to me and concerning. I love her pondering over the inner workings and realizing that her world is happening around her but I’m also concerned as I want to get the answers right OR maybe more importantly, not get them wrong. Between her preschool and our conversations, she’s picked up information about elections – she wasn’t sure if she wanted Donald Trumpet to win or Joe Vitamin. The voting conversation was easy but understanding the work that politicians and legislators do, that’s been covered and rehashed in many morning car trips. We talked that people, legislators to be exact, come to the Capitol to make rules for people to follow, that will help people that live in North Dakota be successful.
 
When you think of the legislative process it is more complicated than selecting people to come together to make rules to help all but in the end, it boils down to that starting place. Recently, I got to spend a little time with the youngest daughter of Matt Gardner, our Director of Government Affairs. She will be 10 soon. I asked her if she knew what her dad does. Her answers came from a place of admiration – I can tell that their household has been having similar conversations as my car rides. She stated that her dad does important work for businesses because important things happen at the Capitol. She told me that he is always talking to people or doing webinars because that’s how work gets done.
 
The work that GNDC is simple in that we work with the legislative process but complex due to the issues at hand. We represent business interests to help legislators make the policies that will foster further economic development and position our state in the global market. This Legislative Session, we’ve had a great track record because we have stayed true to the concerns of our members. My daughter may not yet understand regulatory environment or fair, equitable tax structures – she is concerned about bumpy roads though! We will continue to discuss the decisions that could impact her – it is my job to present the information for her to digest. Sometimes it's responses to questions she asks and sometimes it’s to help her know the things that she doesn’t even know to ask about. I envision many legislators feel that way about their districts and constituents. They are answering questions, responding to rules, and developing policies to help better everyone’s lives. However, I have a feeling that legislators aren’t googling to see how old Governor Burgum is and if he has a cat – if anyone knows, let me know so I can tell my daughter, Eleanor. 

GNDC SPRING 2021 ISSUE OF REPORT ON BUSINESS - A NEW NORMAL IN THE WORKPLACE