Jobs & the Economy
My number one priority in Congress is to work and implement a legislative agenda that supports long-term economic growth through increasing at-home manufacturing, innovation, and investments in our infrastructure. Small businesses are a critical part of economic recovery for our nation because they are the leading source of new job growth.
Exports from Northwest Washington create jobs and connect us to the rest of the world. I have worked to help small businesses export their products. I support trade policies that promote exports and create jobs here at home. Approximately one in three jobs in Washington is tied to foreign exports, and the pay for these jobs is about 46% more than the overall state average. And, the U.S. Department of Commerce’s International Trade Administration (ITA) recently announced new export data that shows Washington merchandise exports increased 16 percent in the first half of 2012 compared to the same period in 2011, growing from $30.3 billion to $35.1 billion. When Washington state businesses export, they create jobs here.
To help our local economy, have established a District Export Promotion Program to help link small businesses with local, state, and federal resources that help companies sell their products to other countries and create jobs here at home. The District Export Promotion Program helps small and medium sized businesses export their products – not their jobs – overseas.
Accomplishments
- Introduced a legislation to reauthorize and expand the U.S. Export-Import (Ex-Im) Bank. This reauthorization passed both the House and the Senate and was signed by the President. The bank, whose authority expires helps finance sales of U.S. manufactured goods. Since 2007 the Ex-Im bank has supported more than $21 billion in exports in Washington’s 2nd Congressional District from large and small businesses.
- Supported tax credits for capital investments and equipment purchases so small businesses could afford to expand in these tough economic times
- Supported Boeing’s bid to build the next Air Force Tanker in the Northwest by the best aerospace workers in the world
- Introduced legislation to make the EB-5 visa program permanent, allowing qualified foreigners who make major investments in U.S. businesses that create or save at least ten full-time jobs to seek visas
- Introduced and passed legislation to create an APEC Business travel card, allowing American business men and women will be able to travel more freely to the Asia-Pacific region and expanding opportunities to export American goods to these important markets
- Implemented a District-based export promotion program to help small businesses export their products – not their jobs – overseas
- Announced and supported a program by the U.S. Department of Treasury that will lend more than $216 million to small businesses, in Washington State thanks to funding from the State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI). The SSBCI was created by the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010, which I supported. The grant, which will be administered by the Washington Department of Commerce, will leverage at least $10 for every $1 in federal funding.
- Cosponsor of the Bring Jobs Home Act (HR 5542), which includes a 20 percent tax credit that U.S. businesses can use against their overall tax liability for costs associated with moving a product line, trade, or business located outside the country, back to the United States. The legislation also closes the loopholes for shipping jobs overseas by disallowing the deduction companies can currently take for the costs associated with outsourcing.