The challenge
The San Francisco Bay Area is an economic powerhouse, a global center of innovation and a laboratory for some of the nation's most urgent policy challenges. But economic influence doesn't automatically translate into political influence. In Washington, even the regions that matter most need a sustained presence, a coherent agenda and the relationships to make their priorities heard.
The approach
Since 2021, ORSO has represented the Bay Area Council in Washington, serving as its principal liaison to Congress and the executive branch. Our charge is to connect the region's economic leadership and policy ideas to the decisions being made in the nation's capital — and ensure that the Bay Area is helping shape those decisions, not simply reacting to them.
Our work spans the issues that will define the region's future: infrastructure and housing, economic competitiveness, energy and environmental resilience, research and innovation, and the federal policies that underpin them. We translate the Council's priorities into a Washington agenda, identify opportunities for engagement and cultivate relationships across institutions and political lines.
Each year, we also bring a delegation of 25 to 35 of the region's business leaders, government affairs executives and public agency heads to Washington for direct engagement with congressional leaders, senior administration officials and federal agencies. These aren't ceremonial visits. They're opportunities to advance a shared agenda, strengthen relationships and establish the Bay Area's business community as a serious and credible participant in federal policymaking. ORSO also provides federal affairs support to California Forever.
The impact
Five years of sustained representation have given the Bay Area Council continuity, institutional knowledge and a dependable presence in Washington. Its leadership has a direct channel to federal decision-makers, an established platform for advancing regional priorities and a trusted advocate who understands both the Bay Area's ambitions and the realities of federal policymaking.
