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President’s Message: Washington ’s Competitiveness Largely Depends Upon Us ...President George Bush |
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Written On: November/December 2003 |
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Written By: By Don C. Brunell, AWB President |
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It is not often that anyone gets 45 minutes with the President of the United States, but on August 22, six of us met with President Bush at Boeing Field to talk about Washington’s high unemployment rate and lagging economy.
The President was very direct and concise as he opened the meeting. I’ll never forget his words:
“You have a beautiful state, but it is a long ways out here. You have a competitive advantage because people want to live here, but you have a reputation of being hard on business. I’m concerned about your high unemployment rate and loss of manufacturing jobs. We want to help as much as we can in Washington [D.C.], but frankly a lot depends upon you and how your state and local governments pitch in and help!”
It was clear President Bush knew exactly what was going on in Washington. Since September 11, 2001, our state and Oregon have taken turns leading the nation in unemployment. And since July 2000, Washington state has led the nation in lost manufacturing jobs – one-in-five – and our economy continues to lag behind the national economic recovery.
It is also obvious that even in today’s fast-paced computerized world, Washington state is geographically isolated. While we have a competitive shipping advantage because we are closer to ports in Alaska, Japan, Korea, and China, shipping goods to and from Washington by road and rail costs more and takes longer.
The problem becomes even more acute as our primary competitive advantage—low cost, reliable electricity—evaporates.
When we told the President about our state’s Competitiveness Council and the Priorities of Government process that Governor Locke and our Legislature developed in the last legislative session, he agreed it was a good start. While he acknowledged that our state is ahead of most others in that regard, he asked:
“Do you have the will to sustain it, and can you convince investors looking to relocate or build new facilities that Washington is a good place to do business?”
Good questions!
Five things need to happen if our state is to change its image and become a place where employers want to invest and create new jobs:
First, legislators must resist efforts by those who felt slighted by the 2003 Legislature to bust the budget or reverse reforms in unemployment and workers’ compensation. Those reversals will only worsen Washington’s reputation as being bad for business.
Second, our state leaders must continue the Priorities of Government process in 2004, 2005, and beyond. In the years ahead, it will be even more difficult for elected officials to prioritize spending and allocate limited tax dollars.
Third, the Competitiveness Council must continue. Some of its excellent recommendations have been implemented, but there is more “heavy-lifting” to do if our state is going to create and retain jobs. For example, creating simpler, more user-friendly regulations is essential. So is cutting permitting red tape and abolishing the “gotcha!” mentality of state and local inspectors.
Fourth, the state needs an economic development strategy that employers, unions, state agencies, and citizens can embrace. Part of that strategy includes developing a coordinated team to help struggling companies recruit and retain good workers. If a firm is thinking about locating in our state, that coordinated team would help them in the same way.
Finally, we must have the will to embrace economic growth and understand the advantages our competitors offer, whether they be from Utah, North Carolina, China or Mexico. We must develop the attitude that we are going to snag those opportunities for Washington.
I don’t know if I’ll ever have another opportunity to spend 45 minutes with the President of the United States, but I’d be gratified if the next time he visits Washington, he celebrates the jobs and economic opportunities we created.
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