Director of Government Affairs

American Council of Engineering Companies of Minnesota•St. Paul, MN

11h•Onsite

About The Position

The Director of Government Affairs is the principal owner of ACEC Minnesota's legislative, regulatory, and public agency advocacy. The role exists to advance the business interests of member firms in law and rule. In coordination with the CEO, the Director sets and executes the organization's advocacy strategy, owns its relationships with legislators and agency leadership, and is accountable for advocacy outcomes. A successful candidate for the position of Director of Government Affairs owns advocacy outcomes. They define what ACEC Minnesota wants from a relationship or an issue and are accountable for whether the organization gets it. The Director operates independently at the director level, with work product reaching the CEO in final, publishable form. To be successful in this position, they must manage multiple concurrent issues through session and between sessions without dropped commitments to members, legislators, coalition partners, or agencies. This position must maintain complete records of positions taken and commitments made so institutional knowledge survives the role holder.

Requirements

Demonstrated experience owning a legislative or regulatory portfolio, including direct lobbying and coalition leadership
Working knowledge of Minnesota legislative process, administrative rulemaking, and public procurement
Ability to translate technical member firm concerns into positions legislators and agency staff can act on
Strong analytical writing under deadline, with a demonstrated record of accuracy
Judgment to know when to commit the organization and when to escalate to the CEO

Responsibilities

Develop the annual legislative agenda in coordination with the CEO and own its execution through session
Analyze and prioritize legislation affecting the engineering industry, including procurement, qualifications-based selection, professional licensure, liability, and infrastructure funding
Represent ACEC Minnesota at the Capitol, including direct engagement with legislators and staff, testimony, and coordination of CEO and member testimony
Produce the end-of-session summary and interim analysis
Maintain working knowledge of Minnesota campaign finance and lobbying law
Report all campaign finance activity (contributions and expenses) on a weekly basis
Co-own with the CEO ACEC Minnesota's working relationships with MnDOT, the Metropolitan Council, state licensing boards, and other agencies whose rules and procurement practices affect member firms
Monitor rulemaking dockets and policy changes and represent the organization in rulemaking proceedings
Draft comment letters
Advise on coalition responses
Convert member firm concerns about agency practice, including procurement and contract terms, into defined advocacy objectives
Build and manage coalitions with allied organizations on shared legislative and regulatory priorities
Serve as ACEC Minnesota's principal in coalition settings, with authority to speak to positions the CEO has approved
Staff the government affairs committee and connect committee activity to the legislative agenda
Support the PAC and campaign fund committees with fundraising, candidate evaluation, event planning, and compliance awareness
Align state advocacy with ACEC National priorities
Coordinate federal fly-in participation twice per year
Maintain relationships with the Minnesota congressional delegation's staff
Brief the CEO on legislative and regulatory developments with analysis that supports decisions
Produce member-facing advocacy communications

Benefits

Medical coverage begins the first of the month following 30 days of employment.
Dental coverage begins the first of the month following 30 days of employment.
Vision coverage begins the first of the month following 30 days of employment.
ACEC Minnesota pays 80 percent of the employee-only premium for medical, dental, and vision.
ACEC Minnesota pays 50 percent of dependent premiums for medical, dental, and vision.
The ACEC Minnesota 401(k) Plan makes a 3 percent safe harbor employer contribution, fully vested immediately.
Eligibility for the 401(k) plan begins on your date of hire, with plan entry the first of the month that follows.
Pre-tax and Roth deferrals are available for the 401(k) plan.
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Compensation is reviewed annually in July, aligned with the fiscal year.
The position is eligible for a discretionary annual performance bonus based on organizational and individual performance.