The “One Big Beautiful Bill”

Michele N. Siekerka, Esq., President and CEO of the New Jersey Business & Industry Association, leads the nation’s largest, most influential employers’ organization, advocating on behalf of New Jersey’s large and small businesses for policies that will make New Jersey more affordable and regionally competitive.

Being known as a collaborative leader, Siekerka is leading an NJBIA established coalition (New Jersey Business Coalition) comprised of more than 100 business and nonprofit associations across the state to tackle the tough economic and business challenges our state is facing during COVID 19.

Well versed on the ‘boots on the ground” issues affecting our state’s business community, Michele is often the “go to” resource for media and is sought after to share her expertise in public forums across the state.

Ray Cantor is Deputy Chief Government Affairs Officer of Government Affairs of the New Jersey Business & Industry Association (NJBIA), the nation’s largest state-level business association whose member companies collectively employ 1 million people.

Cantor, an attorney whose career has included high-level positions in the legislative and executive branches of government, a former assistant commissioner and, later, chief adviser to the commissioner of the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), leads NJBIA’s advocacy efforts on environmental and energy matters affecting the business community.

At DEP, Cantor oversaw the offices of Legal Affairs, Dispute Resolution, and Economic Analysis in addition to advising the DEP commissioner on policy, legal, management, and economic matters. Cantor was also responsible for policy formulation related to all DEP regulations, including site remediation, NRD, air quality, water regulation, and land-use management.

A graduate of New York Law School, Cantor began his career working at the state’s Office of Legislative Services as senior counsel in the Environment, Energy, & Natural Resources section. He later served as the Assistant Commissioner of Land Use Management & Compliance at DEP until 2002 and also worked as a project consultant for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Cantor’s experience as a business lobbyist includes five years as director of Government Affairs for the Medical Society of New Jersey and then executive director of the New Jersey Apartment Association. He returned to the state DEP in 2010, where he served as chief advisor to DEP Commissioner Bob Martin for eight years.

Mary Burke Baker is a government affairs counselor, where she leads the Tax Policy practice. Mary focuses on federal tax matters affecting domestic and multinational corporations and pass-through entities. Her practice covers tax policy, tax reform, tax regulations and other guidance, tax administration, and technical tax issues

Ryan Carney is a government affairs advisor and a member of the Public Policy and Law practice group. Prior to joining the firm, Ryan served as the chief of staff for Congressman Bryan Steil (R-WI) and former Congressman Tom MacArthur (R-NJ). Through these roles, he worked directly with the House Financial Services, Armed Services, Natural Resources, and Administration Committees. Ryan excelled in strategic planning, campaign messaging, and leading high-performing teams. Additionally, he served as a staff director for the House Select Committee on Economic Disparity. Ryan has delivered several key bills into public law and raised funds for political candidates’ campaigns. Before his time on Capitol Hill, Ryan was deputy finance director at the National Republican Congressional Committee

Rebecca Moll Freed’s crossover practice spans multiple industries and is positioned at the intersection of law, government and business.

An experienced compliance attorney, Rebecca helps companies navigate the complex framework of pay-to-play laws, corporate political activity, procurement laws, diversity in government contracting, lobbying, trade associations, corporate ethics and gifts and entertainment. Rebecca’s clients include corporations, partnerships, limited liability companies, trade associations, charitable organizations, social welfare organizations and political action committees.

With respect to pay-to-play and procurement laws, Rebecca has extensive experience with vendor codes of ethics, prequalification questionnaires, background qualification questionnaires, diversity in government contracting, set-asides for minority and women-owned businesses (MWBEs), Disadvantaged Business Enterprises (DBEs), and public-private partnerships (P3s). She has also represented clients in bid protest disputes before administrative agencies and the Appellate Division.

Moreover, Rebecca takes a collaborative “hands-on” approach when it comes to interfacing with clients and views herself as part of the client’s team.

In the energy and utility space, Rebecca has collaborated with utility companies, solar companies, and offshore wind companies on procurement matters and lobbying and political activity compliance. She has also represented clients before the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (BPU).

Rebecca earned her J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center, and her B.A. from Tufts University.

Victoria Hamscho is a member of the Public Policy and Law practice. Victoria focuses her practice on legislative and regulatory matters impacting large employers and stakeholders in the healthcare, higher education, and technology sectors. Victoria works on legislative matters before the House Ways and Means Committee, House Energy and Commerce Committee, Senate Finance Committee, and Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, as well as regulatory matters before the US Department of Health and Human Services and US Department of Education. Victoria works closely with the Congressional Hispanic Caucus and serves on the Advisory Council of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute. Victoria is President-elect of the Hispanic Bar Association of the District of Columbia and is an active member of the Hispanic National Bar Association.

Matt Leggett is a partner in the firm’s Public Policy and Law practice group. Prior to joining the firm, Matt served as minority Chief Counsel for the US Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. He managed the legal, policy, and communications teams that developed and implemented the strategic plan of the committee agenda. Previously, Matt had served as majority chief counsel for the US Senate Environment and Public Works Committee.

David Skillman is a partner in the firm’s Public Policy and Law practice group. Prior to joining the firm, David served as chief of staff and counsel to a senior member of the Ways and Means Committee in Congress and as a managing director at a Washington DC law firm. He regularly advises clients seeking to enact tax, trade, and energy legislation, draft regulatory comments, and secure regulatory changes. He regularly advocates before Congress, the White House, and Treasury, USTR, and other federal agencies.