Government Procurement

The many facets of government offer myriad business opportunities for corporations with the right qualifications, but a lack of access to decision makers often presents an insurmountable obstacle.  Our experience and depth of relationships allow us to position skilled corporations to make their case before the governmental entities that need their services the most.  Additionally, our continuous monitoring of critical agencies and departments gives us real-time knowledge of their needs before a public request for proposal is issued.    

In 2017 we worked with a multinational information technology services and consulting firm as they pursued a significant request for proposal (RFP) with the State of Georgia.Throughout the engagement, we met with them regularly to guide them through the procurement process and provide feedback on each of their submissions and overall strategy.Ultimately, the firm was successful and won the statewide, multi-million dollar contract that will span multiple years.Additionally, our firm has worked over many years with major consulting firms such as KPMG to position them as a trusted resource to state government agencies and private sector businesses with a significant presence in Georgia.Our extensive range of relationships and intimate knowledge of the procurement processes have helped these clients and many others achieve their business development goals. 

Grassroots Engagement and Coalition Development

As a consultant to over twenty-five state, federal, and local campaigns as well as a regional director for the George H. W. Bush for President Campaign and the Republican National Committee, Jay Morgan has experience in directing strategic campaigns that is unparalleled for its longevity among Georgia-based public affairs consultants.  As the youngest Executive Director of a Republican Party organization in the country in his home state of Georgia, he applied grassroots and telemarketing strategies for the first time in the state and oversaw the effort to triple the party's donor base at a critical time in its development.  With then-GOP Chairman Paul Coverdell, he engineered the Georgia GOP's first algebraic targeting system for state legislative races, which identified vulnerable incumbents and winnable open seats. 

In 2013 our firm worked with numerous Fortune 500 companies and key executive branch agencies to create the American Transaction Processors Coalition which now represents the more than 70 Georgia-based companies that develop the products and provide resources supporting the financial service industry's technology needs.  The American Transaction Processors Coalition was created to protect, promote, and preserve the interests of this critical Georgia industry through proactive public relations and government affairs activities.  We have worked with the coalition's leadership to 1) educate key legislators through interactive "lunch and learn" events during the legislative session, 2) defend against legislation that could have unintentional or negative impacts on coalition members, 3) secure the passage of a joint House and Senate study committee that focused on the industry and provided unparalleled opportunities for industry executives to cultivate champions in key leadership positions throughout the legislature and state government, and 4) lead statewide efforts to create a University System of Georgia curriculum dedicated to educating the next generation of financial technology experts who will meet the existing and future workforce needs of the industry.  

In 2015 our firm was hired by the Georgia Hotel & Lodging Association to reposition their association as a thought leader of the tourism industry, a trusted source of information, and a full participant in public policy decisions that impact the industry.  Since that time we have worked tirelessly to learn their history, embrace their goals and craft a strategy and legislative agenda that earns them more political capital over the long-term for the benefit of the entire tourism industry.  Through the execution of that strategy, we have created an aggressive, strategic, and permanent campaign to advocate on behalf of Georgia hotels, their owners, employees, and patrons: the tourism industry.  This campaign has allowed us to successfully cultivate champions throughout the legislature, Governor's office, and key executive branch agencies that stand ready to support the tourism industry's goals and defend against harmful legislation. 

In 2018 our firm worked with patient advocates and their families to secure the addition of Adrenoleukodystrophy (ALD) to the Newborn Screening (NBS) Panel in Georgia.We subsequently mounted a grassroots campaign that included a wide range of stakeholders including advocates, state agencies, and legislators to successfully secure $2,300,000 in recurring state funds in the fiscal year 2020 budget for newborn screening.These funds will pay for needed infrastructure upgrades to the Georgia Public Health Laboratory and costs associated with screening every newborn in Georgia ALD and three other diseases that were simultaneously added to the panel.

In 2020 as 14% budget cuts loomed over the state government our firm worked with Imagine Hope to mount a full scale grass tops campaign in support of restoring the state funds that support their statewide Hepatitis C testing program.  Each member of the conference committee on the budget received a personal call and letter from an executive at a Medication Assisted Treatment clinic and Community Service Board in their district in support of restoring the funds.  Additionally our firm activated stalwart champions House Health Chair Sharon Cooper (R-Marietta) and House Human Services Appropriations Subcommittee Chair Katie Dempsey (R-Rome) to put continuous pressure on the conference committee members to restore the funds.  In the conference committee report on the budget half of the proposed cut to the Imagine Hope program (a total of $125,000) was restored under DBHDD and the entirety of the proposed cut to Hepatitis C testing kits ($40,000) was restored under DPH (total of $165,000).  

Legislative Advocacy

Government is a complex and cumbersome world to understand.  We have the relationships, expertise, and attention to detail that is required to ensure that your interests are represented throughout all levels of government.  Identifying, informing, and building relationships with key influencers is a cornerstone of our process.  In particular, our firm specializes in state-level legislative advocacy at the Georgia General Assembly; for twenty years, the J.L. Morgan Company has provided corporations, coalitions, candidates, and business associations with solid strategic plans for execution of government affairs tactics.  

Our firm led a campaign to expand access to epinephrine throughout the state by securing the passage of HB 337 in 2013 and subsequently SB 126 in 2015.  Each piece of legislation required our firm to strategically build a coalition of supporters, cultivate key allies throughout state government, educate key influencers on the impact of the legislation, and navigate the complexities of the legislative process within a short timeframe. After the General Assembly approved the legislation and it was signed by Governor Nathan Deal, our firm worked closely with the Department of Public Health to ensure that effective rules and regulations were put into place to administer the new laws and that training programs were made available to those taking advantage of the expanded access to epinephrine.  

Beginning in 2018 our firm was retained by Georgia Bikes and the Atlanta Bicycle Coalition for a coalition development initiative aimed at reforming Georgia’s out of date hit and run laws. This partnership was created to support legislation that will provide the option of enhanced penalties for a hit and run driver who knowingly causes and flees the scene of an accident that has resulted in a severe injury. Throughout a two-year campaign, our firm worked closely with stakeholders, including the families of hit and run victims and the Prosecuting Attorneys Council to navigate the bill through the legislative process.  Although members of the minority party almost exclusively supported the measure, our team successfully forged alliances across party lines to ensure both chambers approved of the bill.  Governor Brian Kemp signed the bill into law in 2019.  

In 2019 our firm was retained by the Bicycle Product Suppliers Association to move forward legislation that establishes a three-tier classification system for electric bicycles in Georgia code.  Throughout the legislative session, our team worked with key stakeholders, including local governments, competing micro-mobility companies, and General Assembly leadership to navigate the bill through the complex legislative process. Despite having a bill sponsor from the minority party in one of the most politically fraught years in recent Georgia history, we found a path to success that ended with Governor Brian Kemp signing the bill into law effective July 1, 2019.  

To effectively demonstrate the critical role that businesses play in legislators' districts and throughout the state is essential to building champions and establishing the credibility of an organization among policymakers.Frequently this can be achieved through on-site visits that allow officials to speak with employees in their district and see an organizations' value added to the community up close and personally.Below are photographs from legislative visits and tours that the J.L. Morgan Company has facilitated over the past few years.  

Bike-friendly agenda meets legislature 

THE BENEFITS that biking and walking bring to Georgia communities are more widely understood these days, making it easier for advocates to engage with lawmakers. Hot coffee and biscuits also help.

That’s why Georgia Bikes organizes an annual Biking and Walking Breakfast for legislators and advocates at the State Capitol. Rachel Hollar Umana, executive director of Bike Walk Macon, was in Atlanta for this year’s event on Feb. 4.

“The bicycle breakfast gives me the opportunity to meet face-to-face with the lawmakers who are making the big decisions about how to fund and build our streets,” she said. “I always return to Macon feeling incredibly inspired by our lawmakers’ sincere interest in improving transportation conditions for everyone in Georgia.”

“There’s definitely a heightened awareness and enthusiasm from elected officials regarding biking and walking,” Bike Walk Savannah Executive Director Caila Brown said. “More than enthusiasm, though, is a recognition of how critical these policies and projects are.”

Umana is tracking several pieces of legislation closely, but singled out one as being particularly important.

“I’m excited to follow Senate Resolution 654, which would allow the fuel tax to fund all types of transportation projects, not just bridges and roads,” she said. “It could revolutionize transportation in our state by providing more funding for transit and other forms of multimodal travel.”

Brown agreed.

“This resolution would be transformative in how we think about our streets, moving past addressing surface-level problems and on to larger fixes aimed at increasing the efficiency of our transportation system,” she said. 

Georgia Bikes Executive Director Elliott Caldwell is watching SR 654, but has e-scooters and mobile phones on his radar as well.

“SB 159 by Sen. Steve Gooch of Dahlonega offers very bare bones e-scooter regulations in the state, essentially defining them and letting cities and counties decide how to regulate e-scooter shared programs,” Caldwell said.

“Our main concern has been to not conflate e-scooters with e-bikes — which we had a bill passed on last year thanks to Rep. Teri Anulewicz — and create legal parity. This bill meets our standard.”

HB 113, introduced by Rep. John Carson of Marietta, increases fees associated with violations of Georgia’s hands-free driving law, Caldwell said.

“The bill also removes a first-time offender fee waiver. We support the hands-free law, but are not sure raising fines would act as a necessary deterrent. We concur with Rep. Scott Holcomb, who would like to see a data driven approach to fines and a deeper focus on driver education,” he said.

Of interest to coastal residents is Senate Resolution 690, which encourages the Georgia Outdoor Stewardship Trust Fund and other entities to support implementation of East Coast Greenway projects in Georgia. The greenway is a proposed network of 3,000 miles of trails connecting 15 states and 450 cities.

Georgia’s East Coast Greenway projects include the DeRenne Avenue to 52nd Street segment of the Truman Linear Park Trail in Savannah. It was slated to receive funding this year from the Georgia Outdoor Stewardship Act, but was later removed from a list of approved projects when revenue came up short of projections.

The act, which went into effect last July, dedicates a portion of existing tax revenue collected from the sale of outdoor recreation equipment to “support parks and trails and protect and acquire lands critical to wildlife, clean water and outdoor recreation.”

Another project, the Tabby Trail in St. Marys, suffered the same fate. Nine trail projects survived the cut, but all are north of the Fall Line. Senators Lester Jackson and Ben Watson of Savannah, William Ligon of Brunswick, Jack Hill of Reidsville, and Tyler Harper of Ocilla sponsored SR 690, which would dedicate $3 million annually to East Coast Greenway projects.

“The East Coast Greenway Alliance enthusiastically supports the spirit of SR 690, that coastal Georgia needs and deserves reliable state funding to develop a trail system linking communities from Savannah to St. Marys,” said Brent Buice, South Carolina and Georgia coordinator for the East Coast Greenway Alliance.

“Those funds can come from a variety of existing programs — some dedicated, some competitive — but there should be strategic prioritization for investment in the project. Without predictable resources for the planning, design, and construction of the Greenway, it will take decades to complete, and coastal communities will miss out on the many benefits of having a completed trail system.”

Along with Bike Walk Macon and Bike Walk Savannah, The Atlanta Bicycle Coalition, Pedestrians Educating Drivers on Safety, Bike Alpharetta, Bike Coweta, Bike Roswell, Bike Walk Dunwoody, Bike Walk Golden Isles, the Georgia Outdoor Recreation Coalition, Atlanta Students Advocating for Pedestrians, MTB Atlanta, the Southside Cycling Club, and Friends of LINC from Newnan sent delegates to the Capitol for the breakfast.

The ranks of lawmakers with whom Caldwell has been working is even more geographically diverse.

“We have legislators from all corners of the state talking about joining friends for bicycle rides and wanting safe places to ride,” he said. “The health aspect seems to be growing and not just from a ‘wear spandex, go fast’ perspective but acknowledgment that daily bicycling, even if just for a few miles on a hybrid bike, is good for one’s own health and community health.”

https://www.connectsavannah.com/savannah/bike-friendly-agenda-meets-legislature/Content?oid=14023963

Safety, Health, and Environmental Services team discusses workplace safety at Georgia Capitol

The Safety, Health, and Environmental Services (SHES) group at Georgia Tech met with Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, and key Georgia legislators at the Capitol to highlight efforts in workplace safety and other issues related to health at places of employment.

The Feb. 18 breakfast “meet and greet” included state Sen. John Albers (R-Alpharetta), chairman of the public safety committee; Sen. Frank Ginn (R-Athens), chairman of its economic development committee, and state Rep. Wes Cantrell (R-Woodstock), chairman of the Georgia House Small Business Development Committee, among others.

A program of Tech’s Enterprise Innovation Institute, SHES provides broad range of occupational safety and health training, consulting services, and academic education to organizations in Georgia and across the Southeast.

“These meetings and talks with our state leaders was a great opportunity to speak with key legislators and committee chairs about the importance of promoting health and safety policies and programs that protect employees in their workplaces in our state,” said Hilarie S. Warren, SHES’ senior  research scientist and industrial hygienist.

Warren, is president of the Georgia Local Section of American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA), which facilitated the meetings at the Gold Dome.

For example, Jenny Houlroyd, SHES’ occupational health group manager, updated legislators on her work with the Sustainable Workforce Alliance. That project is focused on giving the tools and training and access to training resources to help protect the health and safety of youth workers and educators in career/technical education programs throughout Georgia.

The Sustainable Workforce Alliance aims to highlight and address exposure risks of youth workers to prevalent hazards in the construction and general industries. The initiative also provides an understanding of worker’s rights and employers’ responsibilities under the Occupational Safety and Health Act.

Warren said they also highlighted Atlanta serving as host to the national organization’s three-day conference that starts June 1, 2020.