Corporate Expansion, Site Selection, & Economic Development

Steel Dynamics Inc (SDI), the fourth largest steel company in America, sought a major expansion into the Southwestern United States or Mexico, in order to have greater access to customers in this growing region. SDI retained Granite to assist in identifying potential locations, as well as state and local economic development incentives. Granite worked with SDI to tour candidate sites and meet with local and state officials, and the company eventually decided to build their new 3 million ton electric arc steel mill in San Patricio County, just north of Corpus Christi. Their $2 billion capital investment will make it the largest steel mill in Texas.

First Step Act - Federal Criminal Justice Reform

In 2018, the White House worked closely with Congressional allies and advocates to promote and secure bipartisan passage of the First Step Act - legislation designed to better enable those leaving prison to become fully employed and productive members of their communities. On behalf of the Texas Public Policy Foundation, Granite's Justin Keener assisted in these activities between the White House and numerous conservative organizations and activists. This included weekly, and sometimes daily, conference calls and meetings between parties to provide updated whip counts, media strategy, and policy discussions. The bipartisan measure was passed by Congress, and signed into law by the president.

Texas Republican Party Platform - ConservativePlatform.Org

On behalf of several of the state's leading conservative organizations including the Texas Public Policy Foundation, Americans for Prosperity-Texas, Texans for Free Enterprise and others, Granite Public Affairs organized the ConservativePlatform.Org coalition to advocate for inclusion of mutually-agreed upon economic, criminal justice, health care, education, and other policy planks in the 2018 Texas Republican Party Platform. Starting with resolutions at precinct conventions, and followed by Senate District conventions, and eventually the Party's committee and floor debates, the effort included the creation of a coalition website, outreach to committee members, digital advertising, materials, and strategy coordination throughout the convention. Numerous planks supported by the coalition were adopted.

Fertility Fraud

Eve Wiley of Dallas discovered through DNA testing that her biological father was her mother's fertility doctor, and that this action was legal in Texas and every other state. A story that captured national attention and led to a feature investigation by ABC's 20/20 program, Eve approached Granite as part of a personal mission to change the law to help future victims, and hold predatory doctors accountable. Granite worked with the state's leading criminal justice advocates, prosecutors, and lawmakers to craft legislation making fertility fraud a crime. The measure was adopted unanimously, and in a sign of solidarity with Eve, numerous female Texas Representatives stood at the front of the chamber when the bill was being debated. Governor Abbott tweeted about the bill, and signed it into law. Numerous states have since followed Texas' lead and adopted similar measures.

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Eminent Domain and Private Property Rights

Characterized as "one of the most complex condemnation and relocation cases in recent memory," Granite was retained by New Process Steel (NPS) to assist in protecting the company as its Houston steel manufacturing facility was in the path of a major highway expansion and being acquired through the use of eminent domain by the state. The value being offered by the state was insufficient to relocate and keep the Houston plant operating, and Granite worked with NPS and their legal team to find a solution beneficial to the state and NPS, that minimized lengthy legal entanglements. To perform this service, Granite helped document the negative impact facing NPS, and raised awareness of their issue with local and state stakeholders. The matter was settled in a timely fashion that allowed the state to begin construction on schedule, and the company was appropriately compensated for its property and relocation.

Criminal Justice Reform

In 2010, the Texas Public Policy Foundation (TPPF) launched the national Right on Crime campaign to raise awareness of the need for conservative criminal justice reform that improves public safety, reduces costs, and empowers victims. Granite's Justin Keener was the architect of that campaign while he was Vice President of Policy & Communications at TPPF, and he now serves as the campaign's senior advisor. A fully integrated campaign, Right on Crime engages the nation's leading conservatives to advance a reform message in several states and nationally. The campaign receives frequent national and regional media coverage, and is often cited by conservative governors and legislators. The campaign's work has been instrumental as reforms have been adopted by dozens of states, and criminal justice reform has emerged as a rare opportunity for bipartisanship in Congress.

Business Tax Cuts

As one of the nation's leading grassroots organization, Americans for Prosperity educates and organizes thousands of Texans by relentlessly and methodically engaging voters in their neighborhoods, on the phone, through paid and organic social media outreach, and email action alerts to their volunteers. Granite was retained by AFP to leverage these grassroots resources and work with state leadership and the Legislature to cut the state's business tax. Despite significant disagreements between the House and Senate on which taxes to cut - the sales, property, or business tax - the Legislature ultimately cut the business tax by 25 percent.

Philanthropic Legislative Advocacy

The Deason Family of Dallas - known for their business success, philanthropy, and conservative political activism - wanted to make it easier for individuals who made one mistake in their youth, but suffer with the consequences of a criminal record, to be given a second chance. Granite worked with Doug Deason and leading reform advocates to identify a legislative solution that would make it easier for first-time, non-violent offenders to ask a judge to seal their records. On behalf of the Deasons, Granite organized and led a coalition of conservative and liberal supporters, and worked closely with a Republican Senate chairman and Democratic House chairman who carried the bill. Special effort was given to gain the support of state leadership and address concerns from law enforcement and the business community. The bill was ultimately passed with overwhelming support. Since its adoption, the measure has been hailed by state leaders as a bipartisan success story.

Corporate Headquarters Relocation

Granite Public Affairs was retained by CCS Medical for lobby and communications services as they considered relocating their corporate headquarters from Florida to Texas. The company is a market leader in distributing home healthcare products and services to patients with chronic conditions in the United States. Granite was successful in helping CCS Medical identify and secure economic development incentives, which helped lead to the company's selection of the DFW Metroplex as the location for their new corporate headquarters. Once this decision was made, Granite had approximately two weeks to manage CCS Medical's relocation announcement. Granite worked with company executives, state and local public officials and business organizations to make a united public announcement that was featured in several print and broadcast media outlets, including the front page of the Dallas Business Journal and front page of the Dallas Morning News business section.

Juvenile Justice Reform

On behalf of a group of several philanthropic organizations, Granite was retained for several legislative sessions to provide lobby and communications support as part of a national juvenile justice campaign aimed at improving youth outcomes, increasing public safety, and decreasing costs. Granite helped bring together legislative leadership, youth advocates, conservative organizations, and the media, to quantify and raise awareness of the benefits of reform. In the 2011 Legislative Session, the effort resulted in sweeping bipartisan reforms that merged the Texas Youth Commission and Texas Juvenile Probation Commission, prioritizing community-based reforms for youth offenders over the use of remote, rural prisons. These reforms have been lifted up as a national model. In the 2013 Legislative Session, Granite helped bring together stakeholders in support of school discipline reforms that were crafted in response to Texas schools' increasing use of criminal citations for misbehavior that historically landed a kid in the principal's office. The reforms were adopted with bipartisan support.

Higher Education Reform

During a period when Texas higher education was under intense scrutiny due to skyrocketing costs and minimal improvements in outcomes, Granite Public Affairs was tasked with forming and managing Texas Business for Higher Education. This coalition featured dozens of Texas' prominent business leaders who supported efforts to improve the quality, affordability, and accessibility of higher education. The coalition provided a much-needed business perspective and voice of support in addressing the challenges facing taxpayers, employers, students, and parents. Granite staff served as the coalition's spokesperson, and was turned to on a daily basis by the media, public officials, and reform advocates.

K-12 Education Reform

Granite provided lobby, media monitoring, and stakeholder outreach services to Texans for Education Reform (TER), a new coalition formed by many of Texas' top business and education leaders. TER advocated access for national best practices for every public school child, including: online and blended learning, access to high-performing charter schools, intervention in failing schools, and a functional Parent Trigger law. Granite organized and directed a team responsible for identifying and maintaining contact with nearly two thousand Republican and Democratic grasstop influencers across the state. This effort resulted in legislators receiving numerous letters, phone calls, and emails, from supporters and activists they personally knew.