Their proposal of a Trans Alaska Pipeline during the oil embargo of the 1970s was so strong that on NovemCongress approved the pipeline which employes nearly 800 workers. This was evident in their backing of the Small Business and Federal Government Competition Enhancement Act which insured that all small businesses could compete for, and receive, defense contracts. Through its existence, the Chamber of Commerce of the United States has been steadfast in the belief that private enterprise and small business have the ability to better human progress given the opportunity. By the early 1960s its political action committees were among the most powerful lobbying groups in Washington. During the post-war years the Chamber resumed its opposition to the expanding role of the federal government. During World War II, the Chamber worked closely with the Roosevelt administration as it cooperated with the government agencies that were regulating production, prices, and wages. Roosevelt (1882-1945) the Chamber initially supported the NIRA, but when the New Deal began to adopt a reform agenda with the passage of the Wagner and Social Security acts, it became a leading voice expressing business' opposition. The building was designed by prominent architect Cass Gilbert (1859-1934).Īfter the election of Franklin D. In 1926 the Chamber built its present headquarters building on Avenue H in Washington, D.C. It became an active supporter of the employee representation plans that flourished during the decade.

During this decade, it worked closely with Herbert Hoover (1874-1964) and the Department of Commerce in order to set up voluntary codes of fair competition. The 1920s were a decade of dramatic growth for the Chamber, which by 1929 had more than 16,000 affiliated business organizations. During the post-war strike wave, the Chamber was a moderate voice within the business community as it refused to lend its support to the open shop movement. After the armistice, the Chamber began lobbying Congress to lift the wartime economic regulations.

During the First World War it organized more than 400 War Service Committees to assist the Council of National Defense that worked closely with the War Industries Board. The Chamber of Commerce of the United States held its first annual meeting on January 21, 1913. The idea was to create an organization that could represent the interests of the business community in Washington, D.C.

The Chamber of Commerce of the United States traces its origins to an Apconference of commercial and trade organizations called by President William Howard Taft (1857-1930).

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