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
Tuesday, September 2, 2014
Region a Leading Metro Area for Exports
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.
Friday, August 29, 2014
3-Month Ramp Closure Begins Next Week
The ramp closure will be in place around
the clock until December, and a signed detour will be provided for motorists.
Additional overnight lane and ramp
closures will also take place next week on I-5, I-705 and State Route 7 as
crews finish creating a protected work area.
Beginning at 9 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 2,
crews will close the left lane and shoulder of northbound I-5 near M Street.
The lane closure will be in place overnight until 5 a.m., Wednesday, Sept.
3.
The I-705 and State Route 7 on-ramps to
northbound I-5 will close overnight from 11 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 3, until 5
a.m. Thursday, Sept. 4. The two right northbound I-5 lanes will also close
between M Street and Portland Avenue for the same hours.
Three lanes of southbound I-5, plus the
Portland Avenue on-ramp and I-705 and SR 7 off-ramps, will close overnight
beginning at 11 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 4 until 6 a.m. Friday, Sept. 5. The
closures will allow crews to remove and replace pavement markings.
As a reminder, southbound I-5 between
Yakima Street and State Route 16 is reduced from four to three general-purpose
lanes around the clock for approximately six weeks. Crews have closed the left
lane so the median can be rebuilt to carry traffic through the area during
future traffic shifts.
Stay
informed of traffic impacts by visiting Tacomatraffic.com, WSDOT’s traffic alerts and construction
update
webpages, and following WSDOT’s regional Twitter account.
Hyperlinks
within the release:
- Tacoma Traffic.com Web page:
- http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/construction/pugetsound/tacoma.htm
- I-5 M Street to Portland Avenue – HOV Web page:
- http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/projects/piercecountyhov/i5_msttoportland/
- Traffic alerts:
- http://www.wsdot.com/traffic/trafficalerts/
- Olympic Region weekly construction and traffic updates Web page:
- http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/Regions/Olympic/Construction/
- Twitter @wsdot_tacoma
- https://twitter.com/wsdot_tacoma
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