Bill Hammond, longtime CEO of the Texas Association of Business, one of the state’s most powerful business advocacy organizations, announced he will leave the organization at the end of the year.
Hammond has been with TAB for more than 18 years. He said he plans to serve as a contract lobbyist and strategist on key business issues such as education, taxes, economic development and health care.
“It has been a wonderful career at TAB. Leading an organization that has affected so much positive change for the business community has been a true honor,” said Hammond. “While I will no longer lead TAB, I plan to continue to be a stalwart for the issues that matter most to business.”
Hammond has been leader at TAB since April 1998. He and the organization have pushed a strong pro-business agendy focusing on taxes and the regulatory environment.
Texas Monthly named Hammond one of the top 25 most powerful people in Texas politics in 2011. Campaign & Politics magazine recognized Hammond in 2010 as one of the state’s “Top 10 Most Influential Figures in Politics and Government”.
Prior to leading TAB, Hammond served for three years as chairman of the Texas Workforce Commission (TWC), appointed by then-Gov. George W. Bush. Hammond also served as the employer representative on the three-member commission.
He served four terms in the Texas House of Representatives during the 1980s, where he successfully authored the Texas Education Agency Sunset Bill and was named one of the state’s top ten legislators by Texas Monthly and the Dallas Morning News.
A former business owner, Hammond was owner and president of Dallas Tent and Awning Company prior to his public service in state government and leadership of TAB.