February 10, 2014
Governor Jerry Brown
State Capitol, Suite 1173
Sacramento, CA 95814
Re: California’s Boeing 777X Proposal
Dear Governor Brown:
On behalf of the Regional Economic Association Leaders of California (R.E.A.L.)—an association of 21 of California’s most influential business and economic development organizations, representing more than 11,000 employers providing more than three million jobs across the state—we want to commend your leadership on the “California bid” to secure production work on The Boeing Company’s (Boeing) 777X jetliner. We especially want to laud your office for moving so decisively and in such a collaborative and coordinated manner with the state’s regional, county and local partners to structure and submit what has been described as a “strong” and “competitive” proposal to secure the 777X production work in California.
The R.E.A.L. Coalition also wishes to express its gratitude to Mike Rossi, your senior adviser for jobs and business development, Kish Rajan, the Director of the GO-Biz, and the entire GO-Biz team for their steadfast leadership, swift action and firm support during this multifaceted and very involved effort. As well, we want to praise the efforts of a great many from the business, economic development, and labor communities for their tireless work in what has been – and continues to be – an ongoing coordinated effort to secure new manufacturing work and jobs to backfill the expiring C-17 Globemaster III military cargo jet program, which will cease production in 2015 and close its Long Beach production facility that supports about 3,000 high-value, skilled jobs and has been a stalwart of the Southern California economy and its leading aerospace industry.
There’s an old maxim that “sometimes by losing a battle you find a new way to win the war.” And although we failed to lure the 777X work to California, we –in the R.E.A.L. Coalition – feel that we fashioned a “new way” to work together, mobilizing state, county and local officials, along with our regional economic development organizations, business associations, “locals” and chambers of commerce, on behalf of California to attract, retain and grow businesses from the leading industries of regional significance to our state’s distinct regional economies.
The undersigned members of the R.E.A.L. Coalition stand ready to work with you, Mr. Rossi, GO-Biz and a bipartisan group of California legislators, as well as with our partners in the business, economic development and labor communities, to engage in many more of these coordinated state-regional-county-local efforts. As well, we hope to continue our ongoing work with your office to operationalize some more common-sense, rational economic development tools, such as a implementing the California Competes Tax Credit in a way not only to generate jobs in highly-sought after export-oriented industries, but also to amplify the significant (induced and indirect) “multiplier effects” that come from growing jobs in these important sectors (see, e.g., the R.E.A.L. Coalition letter, dated: January 24, 2014), as well as to ensure that other reasonable economic development measures are considered, adopted and implemented in a way that reinvigorates our economy, creates more and better jobs, and promotes innovative solutions that capitalize on California’s regional economic strengths and leading industry sectors.
Thank you again for your leadership. Please let us know how we can assist your economic and job growth efforts going forward.
Sincerely,
Bill Allen
President & CEO
Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation
Gary Toebben
President & CEO
Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce
Carl Guardino
President and CEO
Silicon Valley Leadership Group
Paul Granillo
President & CEO
Inland Empire Economic Partnership
Lucy Dunn
President & CEO
Orange County Business Council
Ron Addington
President & CEO
Business Council of San Joaquin County
Randy Gordon
President & CEO
Long Beach Area Chamber of Commerce
Mark Cafferty
President & CEO
San Diego Economic Development Corporation
Cynthia Kurtz
President & CEO
San Gabriel Valley Economic Partnership
Robert Linscheid
President & CEO
San Francisco Chamber of Commerce
Matthew R. Mahood
President & CEO
San Jose Silicon Valley Chamber of Commerce
Cynthia Murray
President & CEO
North Bay Leadership Council
Roger Niello
President and CEO
Sacramento Metro Chamber of Commerce
Tom Terrill
President & CEO
East Bay Leadership Council
Jerry Sanders
President & CEO
San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce
Jim Wunderman
President & CEO
Bay Area Council
Al Smith
President & CEO
Greater Fresno Area Chamber of Commerce
Russell Hancock
President & CEO
Joint Venture
cc: Mike Rossi, Senior Adviser for Jobs and Business Development, Governor Jerry Brown
Kish Rajan, Director, GO-Biz
Download the full letter here.