20 ILLINOIS BUSINESS LEADER KEITH WHEELER Executive Director, Government Affairs and Technology Council Keith Wheeler is a business owner, and former member of the Illinois House of Rep resentatives who served the 50th District from 2015 to 2023. The district covers Kane and Kendall counties. Keith was a legislative leader who achieved significant success in the Illinois Capitol over the last decade. He was a senior advisor to the House Minori ty Leader and was known for his bipartisan approach to policymaking. One of Keith’s biggest achievements as a legislator was the Blue Collars Act, which was the first tax incentive program in the country based on wages paid to construction workers. The bill was signed into law by Governor J.B. Pritzker in 2019. Keith also worked on a variety of other important issues, including criminal justice reform, insurance reform, small business regulatory reform, women’s issues, water supply expansion, gaming, and clean energy. During his time in the Illinois legislature, Keith was assigned to several commit tees, including Cybersecurity, Data Analytics, & IT (Republican Spokesperson), Revenue & Finance, Public Utilities (Republican Spokesperson), Prescription Drug Affordability, Labor & Commerce, Energy & Environment; Executive (Republican Spokesperson), Property Tax Subcommittee, Business and Industry Regulations, Commerce and Inno vation Subcommittee, Job Growth, Preservation and Training, Minority/Disadvantage Analysis Subcommittee, Wage Policy and Study Subcommittee, and Workforce Develop ment Subcommittee. Keith will work closely with Senior Vice President of Government Affairs Clark Kaericher to enhance and develop our Government Affairs across the state as part of our efforts to better serve our members and continue to establish the Chamber as the Voice of Illinois Business. JORDAN RYAN Director of Legislative Affairs Jordan Ryan is the Director of Legislative Affairs at the Illinois Chamber of Commerce. With 13 years of experience in the Illinois Legislature and Illinois politics, he brings a wealth of knowledge to his current position. Jordan has extensive relationships in the House Minority Staff. He started his career under House Minority Leader Tom Cross and later spent nearly a decade on House Minority Leader Jim Durkin’s staff. During his time in the HGOP caucus, Jordan served as the Floor Manager, where he was responsible for assisting the minority Floor Leader during floor debate and with parliamentary proce dures. Jordan also has a background as a legislative analyst, primarily focusing on labor, energy, and environmental issues. Jordan is a lifelong resident of Illinois, having been born and raised in the state. He received his degree in political science from Northern Michigan University but has always maintained Illinois as his home. Jordan and his wife Nicole currently reside in Chicago. CHAMBER NOTES Welcome to the Chamber!
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