Washington Council on International Trade president Eric Schinfeld in March said that, "state legislators don’t know that they in fact know a lot about international trade. The challenge is getting them to take action based on this knowledge in a way that supports and grows our state’s trade economy."
If at least 40% of all jobs in Washington are tied to trade-- as discovered recently by WCIT and the Trade Development Alliance-- then trade is the single largest driver of our state’s economy. Which means that every policy and investment decision happening in Olympia should be viewed through the filter of “how does this impact the international competitiveness of our employers?”
This point was driven home over the weekend by Anthony Hemsted, president and CEO of the World Trade Center of Tacoma in a piece for the News Tribune, in which he makes the connection between infrastructure, trade and economic prosperity. "In order to generate more tax revenue for all other state programs, Gov. Jay Inslee and legislative leaders should place a real priority on investments to expand international trade, which is the true engine of Washington’s economy," he writes. "Improved freight mobility" is one of the "keys to greater trade prosperity."
This point is particularly important as the Legislature is trying to complete its work on the operating budget. Many lawmakers argue that the Legislature cannot work on transportation revenue package until after the debate over the operating budget is completed. Unfortunately, this line of thinking misses the connections Hemsted raises. We already know the numbers: construction of just one of the projects in the transportation package-- SR-167, is estimated to generate 80,000 long-term jobs and $10 billion in wages. Here is another little factoid: some estimate that construction of SR-167 alone would generate about $70.3 million in sales tax revenue for the state. As state budget writers struggle to come to agreement on the operating budget, it seems a shame to ignore the potential contributions a transportation package could make.
Instead of deferring the conversation, "Now is the time to invest in infrastructure," said Hemsted. "While there are many important projects, it makes sense to emphasize those that give the greatest economic development return. Those would include the “trade gateway” twins of completing both state Route 167 and state Route 509."