Sydney Aylward, Duane Cave, and Thomas A. Turk, Ph.D. Join Orange County Business Council Board of Directors
IRVINE, CA (August 15, 2025) — Orange County’s federal, state and regional legislative representatives shared updates and discussed issues impacting the nation’s sixth-most-populous county at Orange County Business Council’s (OCBC) 2025 Legislative Day on August 14 before a sold-out audience at the Hyatt Regency in Irvine.
The event connected elected officials with Orange County stakeholders to address issues vital to the region’s economic development. Modeled after OCBC’s Sacramento Advocacy trips, the day-long program featured moderated discussions with legislators, followed by Q&A sessions, as well as lunch and networking opportunities. The Q&A portion allowed legislators to hear directly from business and community leaders about topics such as economic development, workforce, housing, and infrastructure.
Honorable Legislative Day speakers included United States Representatives Dave Min, Young Kim and Derek Tran. Representing the California State Senate were Bob Archuleta, Catherine Blakespear and Tony Strickland. Representing the California State Assembly were Laurie Davies and Diane Dixon. Representing the Orange County Board of Supervisors were Vice Chair Katrina Foley, Supervisor Vicente Sarmiento and Supervisor Donald P. Wagner.
Among topics and legislation discussed, panelists stressed the importance of many OCBC policy initiatives. Conversations included the necessary reform of California’s Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), implementation of the recent reform of the Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA), retail theft and organized crime prevention, expanding water supply through projects such as the Delta Conveyance Project, funding for higher education, and other issues impacting the region.
Title sponsor for the event was Quantum eMotion; luncheon sponsor was Southern California Edison; and silver sponsors included American Career College/West Coast University, Automobile Club of Southern California, The Boeing Company, California State University, Fullerton, Chevron and Kaiser Permanente.
About Orange County Business Council
For 30 years, Orange County Business Council (OCBC) has been representing and promoting the region’s business community together with government and academia to enhance the economic development of Orange County, California. The Council’s core initiatives include developing pro-business solutions that lead to economic growth, education development that leads to a competitive workforce, advocating for a range of housing, and advocating for adequate investment in regional and statewide infrastructure for the nation’s sixth most populous county. Member organizations include businesses and local organizations representing a diverse cross section of industries including biomedical, construction, education, financial services, health care, manufacturing, municipalities, nonprofit, technology, tourism, transportation, real estate and utilities. For more information, visit ocbc.org.
MEDIA CONTACT:
Sarah Ghebrial
Vice President of Public Affairs, Orange County Business Council
[email protected]
