Trade and Investment Summit (July 14-15)

4^th Annual Pacific Northwest – China  Trade and Investment Summit.

The World Trade Center Tacoma Summit will include around 20 investors and trade professionals from China, most of whom are interested in food and beverages, EB-5 and other investment opportunities. 

Prices for registration, booths, and matchmaking slots can be found on the WTCT website: http://wtcta.org/event/pacific-northwest-china-trade-investment-summit .

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Senate Likely Votes Tuesday on TPA - Say Yes

This week, the Senate will vote for a second time on passage of Trade Promotion Authority legislation…and once again, our two senators - who have already voted to support TPA once - will be two of the most important votes to ensuring successful passage!

Time to contact our Senators one last time to share your support for Trade Promotion Authority (TPA), and so TODAY spend another 60 seconds filling out your name and address into this online advocacy tool.

This updated our online letter to go only to our two senators with a messaging urging them to vote once again in support of TPA. By filling out your information again today, it will be an important reminder to them that they need to stand firm in support of President Obama’s trade agenda and in support of increased international competitiveness for Washington businesses.

Please take one minute to visit HERE to send Senator Murray and Senator Cantwell your support for this important legislation. Thanks!

Tacoma Minimum Wage Task Force Updates

Tacoma's Minimum Wage Task Force has been meeting in earnest for the last three weeks and is starting to evaluate options on what a minimum wage increase for the City of Tacoma might look like.


At this point there are four proposal on the table that would all raise the minimum wage from anywhere of $1.33 to $5.53 or $10.80 to $15.00.  However, the timelines, costs and implementation still vary widely.


As the Task Force nears it's June 30th deadline to report back to City Council, now is the time to share your thoughts on any increases.  The task force has a single email address set up at: minimumwage@cityoftacoma.org


We encourage to share the impacts of a minimum wage to your organization.

US House Passed TPA!

UPDATE:  6-16-2015
Today, the House of Representatives voted (236-189) to give Congress until the end of July to hold another vote on TAA (Trade Adjustment Assistance), a worker retraining program tied to the passage of TPA. 

As lawmakers continue to develop the procedural and legislative strategy to send TPA to the President's desk, our thanks to Pierce County's Members of Congress Reps. Dave Reichert and Derek Kilmer who voted for this bill. (Remember also Sens. Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell who voted in favor of TPA.)

ORIGINAL:
The U.S. House of Representatives voted today to pass Trade Promotion Authority (TPA, "fast track) by a vote of 219-211.  .  Hurrah!

However, the TPA legislation cannot move forward because the House failed to also pass Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA), which was a requirement of the rule governing the House debate.

There are a number of options for moving forward currently being weighed by House leadership.

These include voting to reconsider the TAA bill next week, or voting on separate TPA legislation in the House and Senate. Immediately after the House voted in favor of TPA, House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) made a motion to reconsider the TAA part of H.R. 1314. A vote on that motion will take place June 15 or 16.

For now, we will be thanking those Members who voted in favor of TPA, and we encourage you to also reach out and thank your Representative for his or her support. 

• To see a full list of yeas and nays for TAA.
• To see a full list of yeas and nays for TPA. 

Please let us know if you have any questions.  Otherwise, we hope you have a great weekend!

FINAL SUPPORT ACTION NEEDED FOR TPA NOW

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US Chamber Set TPA as Key Vote

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is identifying TPA as a "key vote," (for purposes of evaluating Congressional members support of business issues:

TPA-2015 Keeps Congress in Control on Trade

The Bipartisan Congressional Trade Priorities and Accountability Act of 2015 (TPA-2015) keeps Congress firmly in control of the legislative process that implements trade agreements. In fact, Congress is making sure it has even more control than it did under TPA-2002.

TPA-2015:

Click here for an overview of the timeline and requirements under TPA-2015.

For information on the benefits of trade and U.S. trade agreements to America, click here.

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15 Now Qualifies for Tacoma Ballot

From the Pierce County Auditors website: http://www.co.pierce.wa.us/auditor

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Should Tacoma be Included in Transit Investment?

Sound Transit is seeking authority from the state Legislature for a public vote that could take place as soon as November 2016, and proposed projects (ST3) include, but are not limited to, extending Link light rail to Everett, Tacoma, Redmond, and neighborhoods in Seattle, as well as adding bus rapid transit along I-405 and making other significant transit investments. 

Take the survey
Visit Sound Transit's new website
View the draft priority project list and map 

Open House 

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Call For Urgent Action on Reauthorization of Export-Import Bank

More than 1,000 companies and associations (Tacoma-Pierce Co. Chamber on page 11), representing businesses and their employees from all 50 states, today called on Congress for quick action on a long-term reauthorization of the U.S. Export-Import Bank (Ex-Im) in a letter coordinated by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM),

“Failure to secure a long-term reauthorization of Ex-Im would amount to unilateral disarmament in the face of other governments’ far more aggressive export credit programs, which have provided their own exporters with significant financing support in recent years,” said the more than 1,000 companies and associations in the letter.

“If Ex-Im is not reauthorized before June 30, American companies would be put at a unique disadvantage in global markets, resulting immediately in lost sales and lost jobs. U.S. businesses of all sizes would be deprived of a vital financing source at a time when boosting exports is increasingly vital to growing our nation’s economy and jobs.”

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Email Address for Public Comment to Minimum Wage Task Force

Those wishing to submit public comment to the Minimum Wage Task Force can do so by emailing minimumwage@cityoftacoma.org.

All comments must follow the City Council’s Rules of Procedure. Per these rules, each email should: identify the author, address the Task Force as a whole, focus on the topic of minimum wage in Tacoma, and maintain courteous language. Authors that fail to comply with these rules will not have their comments submitted to the Task Force.

Comprised of 15 members and two alternates, the Minimum Wage Task Force is tasked with reviewing and discussing minimum wage alternatives in Tacoma, including alternatives to the 15 Now Initiative, and providing recommendations to the City Council by June 30, 2015.

Additional information is available at cityoftacoma.org/minimumwage. Questions can be directed to Christina Watts at (253) 591-5861.