J.C. Watts to speak at Fort Smith chamber meeting
by January 13, 2011 4:39 pm 93 views
The head of the Washington D.C.-based lobbying firm contracted to lobby for the city of Fort Smith will be the speaker at the Jan. 28 annual meeting of the Fort Smith Regional Chamber of Commerce.
J.C. Watts, the former quarterback for the Oklahoma Sooners and Oklahoma Congressman, is the founder and chairman of J.C. Watts Companies. The company has operations in Texas, Oklahoma, and South Korea. Under his parent company, Watts’ operations include CLS Group, a project management firm with construction and engineering operations; Oak Crest Capital, a private equity firm; and Watts Partners, a public affairs consulting company.
Clients of the various Watts’ companies include John Deere, Wells Fargo, NASCAR, Burlington Northern Santa Fe, Clear Channel Communications and Little Rock-based Dillard’s Department Stores.
The City of Fort Smith first contracted with Watts Partners in October 2007 to improve the city’s lobbying effort in Washington. Watts Partners is paid $8,500 a month. City officials have said the lobbyists helped obtain more than $1.2 million from the federal government for May Branch flood control ($109,000), streetscape improvements along Garrison Avenue ($900,000) and extension of the downtown trolley ($237,000).
Watts, born and and raised in Eufaula, Okla., was elected to Congress — representing the 4th Congressional District in Oklahoma — in 1994 where he served four terms but left Congress and started his lobbying firm in 2003. Watts briefly entertained but eventually rejected the idea of running for the Oklahoma Governor’s seat in the 2010 election cycle.
During his term in Congress, Watts rose to hold the 4th highest ranking position in Congress. He served for eight years on the House Armed Services Committee and later on the House Select Committee on Homeland Security.
As quarterback for the University of Oklahoma Sooners, he helped win two consecutive Big Eight championships and two Orange Bowl games. He was voted the Most Valuable Player in the 1981 and the 1982 Orange Bowls.
The chamber’s 2010 Annual Meeting will be held 11:30 a.m., Jan. 28, at the Holiday Inn City Center. For more information or to make reservations, contact Casey McKinley at 783-3111 or [email protected]