Brandon Farris has joined the Steel Manufacturers Association (SMA) as vice president, government affairs. He will oversee SMA’s legislative and regulatory affairs and lead SMA’s public policy agenda and strategic relationships. He will report to SMA President Philip K. Bell.
Brandon comes to SMA from the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM), where he was vice president of domestic policy. Named by The Hill as a top lobbyist in 2023 for leading industry efforts on permitting reform and regulatory overreach. Brandon led the NAM’s efforts on a broad portfolio of policy issues including energy, environment, sustainability, transportation, infrastructure and labor.
Farris brings more than two decades of expertise to SMA. Before the NAM he was head of federal government relations with Chemours, where he was honored as a 2022 top lobbyist by the National Institute for Lobbying & Ethics. After serving in the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve, Brandon started his policy career at the U.S. House Committee on Agriculture and has also held government relations positions with Arkema, SABIC, the Maryland Energy Administration and the National Governors Association.
“Brandon Farris has the experience we need in a government affairs executive, including an impressive record of advancing initiatives through grassroots, grasstops and coalition-building techniques,” Bell said. “He knows our issues inside and out, he has established relationships with executive agencies and Capitol Hill, and he has shown himself to be a strategic leader, a bipartisan relationship builder and a strong advocate for manufacturers.”
Farris has a law degree from George Washington University, a master’s degree in government from Johns Hopkins University, and a bachelor’s degree in history from the Virginia Military Institute. Brandon is a Bryce Harlow Fellow and a member of their alumni advisory board.
Brandon lives in Maryland with his wife, Lorin, and their daughters, Samantha and Mathilda.
