Local chambers of commerce are struggling to retain members and grow their membership, according to Business Journal data and executives at the organizations.

Cumulative membership at the 50 largest chambers in Los Angeles County fell 2 percent this year compared with 2016, according to the Business Journal’s annual list ranking chambers by budget size (see page 11). Twenty-one chambers reported declines in membership, an additional 23 were essentially flat and six reported increases exceeding 1 percent.

The membership situations had little impact on the budgets for most of the organizations.

Chamber executives offered several reasons for the membership problems.

Many businesses that dropped their membership dues during the recession have been reluctant to return and only recently have been scrubbed from membership rolls at several local chambers, executives said.

Newer businesses, especially those started by millennials, are more likely to turn to online social or industry networks instead of joining the local chamber of commerce, chamber officials said. Also, many business owners who are now more pressed for time have simply let chamber participation slide in terms of importance.

“Today, members just don’t volunteer their time to serve on committees or attend events like years ago,” said Randy Gordon, chief executive of the Long Beach Area Chamber of Commerce, which placed No. 5 on this year’s list. “If the (business) owner doesn’t see an immediate return on investment, they may not renew after the first year.”

Indeed, the Long Beach chamber saw its member roll decline 6 percent over the past 12 months to 753. Jeremy Harris, senior vice president at the organization, said much of the drop could be attributed to a “cleanup” of the member database earlier this year, when businesses that hadn’t paid their dues for two or more years were dropped from the roster.

Several other local chambers, including those in Alhambra, Calabasas and Santa Clarita, also scrubbed their databases of nonpaying businesses.

Many of those nonpayers are small businesses.

“For the small-business owner, rent is going up, the minimum wage is going up, other business costs are going up and the regulatory burden is going up,” said Genevieve Morrill, chief executive of the West Hollywood Chamber of Commerce, which saw its membership decline 1 percent to 501. “That is squeezing out money for chamber membership as chamber membership is often one of the first expenses businesses cut.”

Los Angeles County’s largest organization, the Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce, added a net three members over the past year to bring its total to 1,653.

“We lost members during the recession and then have gradually returned to prerecession count,” Chief Executive Gary Toebben said in an email. “While the economy is good, not every business is growing.”

The membership drops haven’t translated into an across-the-board drop in chamber budgets. The cumulative budgets of the chambers on the list were virtually flat this year compared with 2016, eking out a net gain of 0.2 percent. Fourteen of the 50 chambers on the list reported budget increases exceeding 1 percent, while eight reported decreases exceeding 1 percent; the remaining 28 were either unchanged or moved up or down less than 1 percent.

One reason for this: As membership revenue has flattened or dropped, chambers are diversifying their revenue bases, turning to events, special publications and customized services.

“We’ve supplemented the dues with a whole range of new revenue sources: promotional platforms, shop-local programs, business assistance services, etc.,” West Hollywood’s Morrill said. “In some cases, we have been able to secure outside sources of funding for those programs.”

Other chambers have taken more drastic steps in recent months to reshape themselves in the hopes of attracting members.

“We’ve gone through a complete reboot,” said John Musella, board chairman and acting executive officer of No. 10 Santa Clarita Valley Chamber of Commerce, which reported a membership drop of 15 percent to 1,055, due in large part to a scrubbing of the membership database.

Musella said the chamber is about to release a new strategic plan.

A few chambers bucked the trend and grew their membership over the past year, most notably the Greater Los Angeles African American Chamber of Commerce, which added 50 members to reach 300.

Chairman Gene Hale said that over the past couple of years, the organization has held a series of targeted networking events designed to bring in more members.