TOGETHER, WE CAN BUILD A GREATER AMERICA
California has one of the highest unemployment rates in the nation. Since 2007, Federally Extended Unemployment Benefits have been extended every year to 2012. Unemployment in our nation is the worst since 1930. Over 12 million Americans in the U.S. are out of work with an unemployment rate of 9.3% in San Diego County alone. Some of those finding jobs are taking a 19% cut in pay.
We are no longer fighting two wars and spending almost $8 billion dollars a month. It is time to create a jobs program here in the U.S. to rebuild our crumbling infrastructure—highways, bridges, dams and railway systems—a jobs program that goes farther than H.R.7, the American Energy and Infrastructure Jobs Act of 2012. Working the numbers, the Act only creates 6 million jobs. We have 12.8 million Americans out of work.
If we had supported Louisiana with federal funds to rebuild its levies, it would have cost millions, instead of billions to recover the area.
Bringing Overseas Jobs Back to America
Over the past few decades, thousands of U.S. companies outsourced all their manufacturing operations to China, India, the Philippines and elsewhere. The result was large losses of manufacturing sector jobs, and the required skills associated with them. As the U.S. shifted to a more service-based economy, thousands of machine shop owners closed their doors. Today, many machine shop owners are on the verge of retirement, and they have few apprentices to take over the skills of their trade. However, outsourcing is becoming problematic for many companies, leading to decisions to bring the previously outsourced jobs back home.
The decision to manufacture overseas has long seemed a no-brainer. Labor costs in China and other developing nations were so cheap that companies believed they were going to build the future in Asia. However, Chinese labor costs are rising about 15% to 20% a year, making producing goods in China not nearly as cheap as it used to be. For many manufacturers, that narrowing is enough to tip the balance back to U.S. plants. Many companies, especially in the auto and furniture industries, moved plants overseas once China opened its doors to free trade and foreign investment in the last few decades. Labor was cheaper for American companies – less than $1 per hour. Today, labor costs in China have risen dramatically, and shipping and fuel costs have skyrocketed. As China’s economy has expanded, and China has built new factories across the country, the demand for workers has risen.
As a result, wages are up as new companies compete to hire the best workers. By factoring in currency fluctuations and rising wages in emerging markets, the United States is more competitive when it comes to manufacturing.
The average Chinese worker is about a quarter as productive as the average U.S. worker. Companies—particularly the small to medium-size businesses that make up the innovative guts of America’s technology industry—are taking a long, hard look at the downsides of extending their supply chains to the other side of the planet.
These companies are looking to base their decisions on more than just costs. They are looking to shorten lead times and to reduce the inventory they must carry. KPMG International recently asked 196 senior executives to list their top concerns for 2011 and 2012, labor costs ranked below product quality and fluctuations in shipping rates and currency values. And 19% of the companies that responded to an October survey by MFG.com said they had recently brought all or part of their manufacturing back to North America from overseas, up from 12% in the first quarter of 2010. That is a reason U.S. factories added 136,000 jobs last year—the first increase in manufacturing employment since 1997.
The rising labor costs of Chinese workers, due to inflation, rising food prices, etc., are shrinking the savings gained in the past. Average hourly wages for Chinese workers went from a little over $0.50/hour in 2002 to a little over $1.30/hour in 2008—jumped almost 3 times in six years, 2003-2008. By 2015, it will only be about 10% cheaper to manufacture in China.
Unless companies have very large operations, it is difficult to control the quality of products made overseas. Companies that outsourced manufacturing are having problems with defective products, shipment deadlines and cheaper copycat imitations of their products.
Further, the cost of shipping/moving products from overseas is on the rise due to increasing oil prices, and the time lost with shipping and clearing customs is unattractive.
All these factors are making outsourcing manufacturing a questionable decision. Bringing manufacturing back home has several benefits. Although the cost to make something can more than double, most of the logistical problems are it solved instantly.
Policies to create more manufacturing jobs, like the recently announced Skills for America’s Future initiative, can also help with jumpstarting the manufacturing sector towards a new beginning. The development of cheaper manufacturing technologies and manufacturing analytics software can greatly improve efficiencies, and reduce the costs of manufacturing products locally. In addition, simply picking up the phone and calling a local manufacturing vendor, and asking for their expertise in customizing one of their parts for a product can greatly improve quality and performance. All these benefits can greatly reduce outsourcing, create more jobs locally, and generate high-quality products. Revamping manufacturing locally is a win for everyone.
Domestic Job Creation
To achieve our dreams, Americans need a comprehensive jobs program—one that goes farther than H.R.7, the American Energy and Infrastructure Jobs Act of 2012.
Shirley DeCourt-Park believes it is time to put people back to work, not with a hand out, but with a hand up.
Government support for local job creation and training initiatives will help businesses meet their workforce needs while providing employment during tough economic times. The government essentially invests in an employee, which is matched by employers. It enables businesses to hire new workers, enhancing the economy in our local communities.
The jobs program is designed to place workers in jobs that will result in full-time employment with head-of-household wages, as well as increase the skill level of the eligible participant.
The program will help subsidize the wages of a new employee hired by any public hospital, private non-profit or for-profit entity over a six-month period. Other eligible employees will include unemployed construction and skilled labor workers who would normally be constructing the next suburban community but for the fact that there is next to no home building occurring. These workers will be put to work fixing crumbling highways, retrofitting creaky old bridges, reinforcing decades old dams and upgrading our country’s once-great railways.
The program covers an employee’s salary at 100% at the beginning of the six-month period, and then the subsidy decreases over the six months. Preference is given to small businesses. Eligible employees must have at least one child under the age of 18 living at home and earn within 250% of the federal poverty line.
Clean Energy, Green Jobs
One in every four solar energy jobs in the United States is held by a Californian, and growth in the clean-tech industry is burgeoning nationwide. A 2011 study indicated that in August, California had an estimated 25,575 of the 100,237 solar-related jobs nationwide. The total for California was four times greater than the runner-up, Colorado, with 6,186 solar jobs as of last summer.
California ranked first in the nation for generating electricity from both photovoltaic solar panels and concentrated solar power systems that use mirrors to focus the sun's energy to create steam to run turbines, the study said.
The report shows that the solar industry is not only creating green jobs across California, and is forecast to continue growing at a much faster pace than the overall U.S. economy. California industry and policymakers have a tremendous opportunity to build on this solid foundation and make solar a centerpiece of the state's energy policy.
Nationally, employment in all parts of the solar industry -- including manufacturing, installation, residential, commercial and large-scale power generation -- grew 6.8% in the 12 months prior to August, the study said. Overall U.S. job growth was less than 1% for the same period.
Growth is expected to accelerate by 24%, creating 24,000 jobs over the next year, based on a survey of solar employers.
We have to look beyond the failure of one company and see the tremendous success that's occurring here, Arno Harris, the Chief Executive of Recurrent Energy, a San Francisco solar developer.
Here's the census' list of the top 10 states by the number of solar industry jobs:
| 1. California 2. Colorado 3. Arizona 4. Pennsylvania 5. New York 6. Florida 7. Texas 8. Oregon 9. New Jersey 10. Massachusetts |
25,575 6,186 4,786 4,703 4,279 4,224 3,346 3,346 2,871 2,395 |
Protect, Preserve and Enhance Our Environment
Clean and renewable energy presents an opportunity for America to become more energy independent and economically secure. Clean energy is making lives better by using today’s technology to improve the way we live.
Solar
Solar energy is the cleanest, most abundant, renewable energy source available, and the U.S. has an ample and infinite supply of sun. With this tremendous potential, it is no surprise that solar is one of the fastest growing sectors of the American economy, with more than 5,500 solar companies employing people in every state in the Union. States across the country understand the promise of solar power and California, Nevada, New Jersey and Colorado are all leading the way in domestic solar installations.
Solar is not only clean, it is affordable. In 2011, San Antonio discovered that solar had become so cost-effective that the city opted to scrap plans for a new coal-fired power plant and install a large-scale solar facility instead.
Solar is also a great way to create needed jobs in America. Generating power with solar creates seven times as many jobs as generating power with dirty, dangerous and increasingly expensive fossil fuels like coal.
Wind
Wind energy is the fastest-growing source of power on the planet. With our tremendous wind resources, the United States can become a world leader in wind energy. Wind energy accounted for 93% of total installed renewable electricity capacity in 2008. In fact, in 2008 the United States surpassed Germany as the world leader in installed wind capacity. Iowa gets 20% of its power from wind, and the Department of Energy says that our entire country can get 20% percent of it’s power from wind energy alone by 2030.
Wind is not only abundant; it is also an affordable and reliable source of energy. In the summer of 2011, when record heat waves in Texas threatened the reliability of the state’s power grid, Texas turned to wind to provide the crucial power it needed to prevent blackouts.
As a growing power source, wind energy is a major source of economic development. Not only do farmers harness the wind and sell the extra energy they generate for a profit, but also, wind farm development brings construction jobs, leasing royalties and increased tax revenues to local communities. If the United States were to produce just 20% of its energy from the wind, roughly 800,000 jobs would be created, annual property tax revenues would increase to $1.5 billion, and annual payments to rural landowners would increase to $600 million by 2030.
Geothermal
Geothermal energy is right under our feet. The earth's core is like an inner sun, heating the earth's surface and warming the water and rocks beneath. This steaming water and rock can be used to generate heat and electricity. The uppermost six miles of the earth's crust alone contains more energy than all the oil and gas reserves in the world. Geothermal resources are reliable and are available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
The United States leads the world geothermal electricity capacity and generation, with most of that power installed in California. The U.S. Department of Energy estimates that geothermal power plants can provide 15,000 megawatts (MWs) of new capacity within the next decade.
San Diego Watersheds
Watersheds are the ecosystems where we live. Groundwater and surface waters like streams and rivers that drain into the ocean or in coastal lagoons are the life-blood for ecosytems. The water quality in them defines the flood control, habitat, wildlife and natural filtering resources and capabilities of a watershed. We have eleven watersheds in the county that drain toward the Pacific Ocean.
Protecting San Diego’s Canyons
We need to protect and restore San Diego County's canyons and creeks by fostering education and ongoing community involvement. Very few other places in the world have canyons like Los Penasquitos, Maple Canyon or the Otay Valley Open Space. These natural geological formations offer San Diegan residents a peaceful place for reflection, an invigorating off-road bike ride or a wondrous rugged landscape that provides hands-on education opportunities for our children.
Recent state legislation was introduced to dedicate 10,000 acres of canyons in San Diego. While many areas in San Diego are already designated as open space, the dedicated 10,000 acres would require the approval of two-thirds of San Diegans to sell or convert the land for other, commercial purposes.
As good stewards of our surroundings, we should all work to preserve our natural resources for our children and future generations. If the bill makes it through the legislature and is signed by the Governor, it is a step to ensure that our unique canyons will be protected and enjoyed.
Whether a preservationist or an outdoorsman, everyone can enjoy these natural phenomena often literally in our back yards. Parks and open space our precious gifts in Southern California and we know from experience that if we don’t work to protect these canyons, they could be lost forever.
Education
Worldwide, U.S. ranks 26th when it comes to investment in the education of our youth. We are under-investing in our education compared to higher performing countries. Given our under-investment in education, it is not surprising to learn that the United States ranks 12th in reading ability, 19th in student scientific literacy, 24th in mathematical ability and 26th in the world in problem-solving ability.
We should study our nation’s successful schools, private and public, and emulate those successes throughout the nation. An approach to one of the many issues that need to be addressed in our educational system is recognizing that the “one size fits all” system that promotes kids based on age will not promote our best to raise to the top as fast as they could. Because there is such a wide range of intellectual ability within any given age group, the lessons must be presented in several different formats and environments.
Some children will master a concept right away with a simple presentation and a few examples, while others need more attention and more repetitive and in depth presentation. The logical solution is to separate these two groups.
Those who need more attention are placed in a regular classroom environment where they will be given the attention and the opportunity to work with other students to learn the assignment. Some will need very little addition help to master the task, while others will require more help. However, there will be a limit to how long a child can stay in a regular classroom to learn a task, whether it’s days or weeks.
If a student has not mastered a task within the allotted timeframe, the student will be placed in a program designed to give individual attention with teachers who have the ability to present the materials in several different formats giving the child every opportunity to learn the material. If after several days of participating in the one on one lessons the student has not mastered the task it will be clear the student has no aptitude for that discipline and should be guided into an educational direction that does not require mastery of that subject.
With this system, a student could master all subjects required for graduation without ever entering a regular classroom and potentially graduate in one-third the time generally allotted. It allows our best students to learn at their own pace, while others may take 5 or 6 years to master the requirements. A student may master all math and science requirements in a short time and still be at a 6th or 7th grade level in other subjects. Most children are naturally inclined to learn in this manner.
To assure that our youth have the opportunity to attend college, we need to increase funding to the Federal Pell Grant, Federal Supplemental Education Opportunity Grant (FSEOG) and the Leveraging Educational Assistance Partnership (LEAP), offering more students the chance to succeed. An average student debt in loans is $22,900. We need to take a hard look at how we can help to forgive some of this burden.
We should help develop our good minds. Our children are our most precious resource, the future of America. If America is to remain the greatest nation on earth, we should never lose sight as to what education is to its future. In this, we all have a common goal.
Social Security & Medicare
The Social Security trust fund contains not cash but IOUs. Payroll taxes don’t go to some vault in Fort Knox, and they certainly aren’t invested. When Social Security runs a surplus, Congress spends the money immediately on something else and then the government claims its owes a debt to itself. Where the money will come from to pay these IOUs is anybody’s guess.
Trust fund balances only exist in “a bookkeeping sense.” The claims made that the bonds in the Social Security “trust fund” are real wealth held by the Social Security Administration are not true.
An IOU you write to yourself and that you hold yourself might be a useful accounting device, but it is not wealth. Unfortunately, many politicians and bureaucrats lie repeatedly about the nature of these bonds and what they imply about the solvency of Social Security.
There is no protection for beneficiaries when our fiscal problems catch up with the IOUs that make up the Social Security “trust fund.” Who will pay for Congress’ excesses? We will, through cuts in our benefits. It’s far past time to stop that practice.
Health Care
The US spends four times as much on health care as other industrialized nations. Health care is now 1/3 of our Federal Budget.
Our health care system is overpriced, subsidized and ineffective. 5% of Americans count for 50% of all health care costs. Most countries provide affordable health care. We need good care at responsible prices like everywhere else in the world.
The rise in health care costs are due, in great part, to catastrophic illnesses; therefore, the mandating of health insurance will not promote a healthier society and lower costs. Prevention and the promotion of a healthier society will, I believe, lower health care costs. We can encourage healthier living by offering tax incentives to companies that create and promote healthier products.
