Urgent Need For Mentors at Tacoma High Schools

The Hometown Mentor Program through the College Success Foundation recruits college-educated mentors from local communities to support and offer guidance to low-income high school seniors in Tacoma as they prepare for college. 

The program has an urgent need for mentors at 3 Tacoma high schools (Foss, Mt. Tahoma and Stadium). Mentors must be at least 21 years old.

Click here for a link with more info about the program and volunteer opportunity including the application.  Please consider this rewarding volunteer experience and contact Keith Stier-Van Essen at kstier.vanessen@collegesuccessfoundation.org if you have more questions.

Apply to Serve on the Board of Ethics

The Tacoma City Council is looking for applicants to fill one position on the Board of Ethics.

The Board of Ethics consists of five regular members recommended by the Government Performance and Finance Committee and appointed by the City Council. The membership term is three years and is comprised of City residents.

The role of the Board is to receive, investigate and make recommendations for disposition of complaints of Code of Ethics violations by the City Manager, the Director of Public Utilities, a member of the Public Utility Board (Utility Board), or a City-elected official. The Board may also render advisory opinions in response to a request by one of the aforementioned officials, and render and publish formal opinions on any matter within the scope of the Board's authority which it may deem appropriate.

For additional information on the Board of Ethics please visit cityoftacoma.org/government/committees_boards_commissions/board_of_ethics or contact City Clerk Doris Sorum at 253. 591.5361.

Applications must be submitted to the City Clerk’s Office by Friday, Oct. 10, 2014. To apply, please visit cityoftacoma.org/cbcapplication or contact Linnea Meredith at 253.591.5178, City Clerk’s Office, Room 11, Tacoma Municipal Building North, 733 Market St., Tacoma, WA 98402.

Apply to Serve on the Audit Advisory Board

The Tacoma City Council is looking for applicants to fill the citizen position on the Audit Advisory Board.

The Audit Advisory Board consists of each member of the Government Performance and Finance Committee, two members of the Tacoma Public Utilities Board, and one person knowledgeable in government performance and financial auditing, public administration, and government financial and fiscal practices. The chair of the Government Performance and Finance Committee serves as chair of the Audit Advisory Board.

The Audit Advisory Board supports the City Council’s Government Performance and Finance Committee in carrying out its audit advisory, oversight and liaison functions.  These functions include: ensuring coordination of audit needs of the City Council and the work of independent auditors retained by the City to audit City programs, functions and activities; making audit management recommendations to the City Council; and acting as a liaison between the City Council and the office of the City Manager with regard to audits of City programs, functions, and activities that are not under the direction of the City Council.

For additional information on the Audit Advisory Board, please contact Michelle Roose at 253.591. 5803 or mroose@cityoftacoma.org.

Applications must be submitted to the City Clerk’s Office by Friday, Oct. 10, 2014. To apply, please visit cityoftacoma.org/cbcapplication or contact Linnea Meredith at 253.591.5178, City Clerk’s Office, Room 11, Municipal Building North, 733 Market St., Tacoma, WA 98402.

WA Support for EX-IM Bank Strong

[UPDATED September 18, 2014]

A co-signed letter to the Washington Congressional Delegation on the importance of reauthorizing the Export-Import Bank had 40 diverse businesses, ports and organizations from across Washington state as signatories, strengthening our voice on this critical issue.

 (Click on Image for a Larger View)

 

Chamber For & Against City Charter Amendments

The Chamber, in response to the Tacoma City Council adoption of resolutions amending the City Charter, is taking positions on some of the resulting proposed ballot measures for the November 4, 2014 General Election. 

The Tacoma-Pierce County Chamber’s Board of Directors voted to oppose:
•    Proposed Charter Amendment No. 6, Council (Re-)Confirmation of Utility Director
•    Proposed Charter Amendment No. 8, Extended Mayor and Council Term Limits

The Tacoma-Pierce County Chamber’s Board of Directors voted to support:
•    Proposed Charter Amendment No. 5, Council Confirmation of Department Director
•    Proposed Charter Amendment No. 9, Citizen Commission on Elected Salaries

Region a Leading Metro Area for Exports

New data shows Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue is a leading metropolitan area for exports.  The area's Merchandise Exports increased 13 Percent to a Record High in 2013.

The U.S. Department of Commerce’s International Trade Administration (ITA) today announced new export data that shows merchandise exports from the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue metropolitan area totaled a record $56.7 billion, an increase of 13 percent or $6.4 billion from 2012 to 2013. This growth helped the region remain a top metropolitan area for exports in 2013.

The Department of Commerce is dedicated to assisting U.S. firms meet the needs of global consumers while strengthening our economy and supporting jobs throughout the metropolitan area and our nation, said Under Secretary of Commerce for International Trade Stefan M. Selig. U.S. companies of all sizes are exploring the possible benefits of exporting, and looking beyond our borders to expand their customer base. More than 95 percent of potential consumers live outside the United States and crave the world-class products offered by American businesses.

According to international trade figures released today by ITA, 156 U.S. metropolitan areas exported more than $1 billion in merchandise in 2013. Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue is one of 33 metropolitan areas with merchandise exports worth more than $10 billion.  Thirty-three of the top 50 metropolitan areas for exports registered positive growth between 2012 and 2013 – with 26 reaching record export levels.

Key merchandise export categories for the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue metropolitan area in 2013 included computer and electronic products, fishing, hunting, and trapping, machinery, miscellaneous manufactures, and transportation equipment. China, Japan, Canada, Hong Kong, and the United Arab Emirates were the leading destinations for the region's exports.

Metro area exporters continue to ramp up their international sales with quality, made-in-the-USA products, said Diane Mooney, Director of the U.S. Commercial Service/Seattle. By selling internationally, many of these exporters are better able to weather changes in the economy while building their global competitiveness.

The Department of Commerce’s International Trade Administration works with American businesses of all sizes to identify export opportunities for their products and services to bolster President Obama’s National Export Initiative (NEI). A focus of the NEI is helping metropolitan areas identify regional strengths in order to increase their exports, boost the local economy, and create jobs for American workers.

For more information on exporting, contact the U.S. Commercial Service Export Assistance Center in Seattle at (206)553-5615 ext.236 or visit here.

For more information on the impact of Metropolitan Statistical Areas on U.S. exports, including fact sheets for the top 50 exporting MSAs in 2013, visit here.