By Bob West

That’s a fair question, particularly when you’re considering whether or not to get involved in government affairs. Most people -– regardless of their profession or industry -– feel so detached from the political scene in Washington, D.C., and so irrelevant to the politicians that they don’t see how they can make a difference in Washington.

Unfortunately, this was obvious at the Save Small Business fly-in that took place Sept. 20 in Washington. The goal was to lobby for the extension of the H-2B legislation that landscape companies have used for the last few years and that was set to expire on Sept. 30.

This is not the place to rehash the merit behind the H-2B program. Suffice to say, this program provides tens of thousands of legal, quality laborers to this industry. Reducing this program threatens many landscape companies’ ability to grow next year and, in some cases, their ability to exist at all.

Despite the potential ramifications of the program’s expiration, only about 50 individuals attended this lobbying day, and most of them were from other industries – hotels, resorts, restaurants, fishing companies, etc. I understand the sense of disenfranchisement that precludes many Green Industry professionals from attending such an event. Other obstacles include the financial costs and the challenges of being out of the office.

However, we all must realize the impact we can have. I spent the day knocking on doors with representatives from three Ohio landscape companies as well as the executive director of the Ohio Landscape Association. We met with the staff of both Ohio senators as well as staff from six Ohio Representatives’ offices. As a result of our visits and phone calls, two Ohio Congressmen agreed to sign on as co-sponsors of the bill.

But our greatest cause for optimism came from a chance meeting with Sen. George Voinovich, who was outside the Senate Hart Building as we headed in for a meeting with his two chief legislative assistants. Our group approached the Senator, introduced ourselves and explained our concerns. The Senator -– who signed on as a co-sponsor of the bill after visits made to his office during PLANET’s Day on the Hill in July –- was familiar with the issue and realistic about the challenges we face.

As we were told time and again, with just weeks to go before mid-term elections no elected officials want their name associated with legislation allowing immigrants into the country. Even long-standing programs such as H-2B are thus considered “good policies but bad politics.”

Voinovich questioned whether the legislation would be voted on before Congress adjourns at month’s end. To aid our cause, he immediately dictated a memo that he wanted to send to Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist emphasizing the time-sensitive nature of Senate Bill 2284 and asking him to bring it to the floor for a vote before adjourning. We carried this message to Voinovich’s legislate aides, and the memo was sent by day’s end.

The result of our efforts? With just days remaining before the Sept. 30 deadline, still no vote. Sadly, politics may win out in the end.

Blame for this can be assigned many places. Our politicians’ primary goal -– particularly in the House -– is their re-election. Politics trump policy, as we were told. However, we as an industry must also accept responsibility.

When only a dozen industry representatives are willing to invest the time and money to represent their causes in Washington then we send the message that legislation we care about doesn’t really matter that much. We also tell the politicians that we don’t count in the vote collection process -– we are neither friend nor foe, regardless of their action or inaction.

Over the last decade, I have seen many changes and advancements in this industry. Speakers at conferences and article writers regularly talk about “the industry’s maturation” and “its increasing professionalism.” I agree wholeheartedly with those observations. But the maturing cannot stop. We must continue pushing this industry forward, and one way to do so is make sure we are heard in the hallways and meeting rooms where our elected officials work, whether that is at the local, state or federal level.

So I encourage you all to join the cause. I cannot promise widespread acceptance for our positions or regular support of legislation we favor. In fact, I can’t even say that getting involved will ultimately matter. However, if you are asking yourself what difference you can make, I can tell you that you cannot make any difference at all if you don’t get involved.

--West is director of communications & industry affairs for LESCO, based in Cleveland.