Capitol Weekly’s Top 100: Lance Hastings

50. Lance Hastings

Manufacturing is one of the largest sectors of California’s economy. It accounted for more than 12 percent of the state’s gross domestic product in 2022 and employs more than 1.2 million Californians. Among the state’s most critical leaders for this industry is Lance Hastings, the president and CEO of the California Manufacturers & Technology Association, which directly represents 400 businesses from the manufacturing community while also advocating for policies to benefit the sector as a whole. The CMTA’s agenda of tax incentives and pro-growth proposals are popular with Republicans as well as pro-business or so-called “Mod” Democrats, with Hastings of course leading the charge. A graduate of Sacramento State, Hastings was a vice president for national affairs for MillerCoors and worked in the U.K. for SABMiller. These days, however, he would tell you he’s always working to advance the cause of manufacturing in California.

Updated Aug. 7, 2024