Opportunities for Government Contracting

Businesses looking to win government contracts will have the opportunity at the Greater Pierce County Purchasing Forum on Wednesday, Oct. 14, from 8:00 a.m. to noon at the STAR Center, 3873 S 66th St in Tacoma. Click here for map and directions.

Learn first-hand how to register and compete for contracts with federal, state, and local government agencies, meet one-on-one with purchasing agents, network with other Pierce County business owners and managers, and participate in breakout sessions.

• Panelists and exhibitors include 
• Pierce County
• City of Tacoma
• Port of Tacoma
• Washington State Department of Transportation
• Washington State Department of Enterprise Services
• Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC)
• Native PTAC
• NAVSUP Fleet Logics Center-Puget Sound
• U.S. General Services Administration (GSA)
• U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
• Joint Base Lewis-McChord
• Tacoma Public Schools
• Pierce Transit
• Northwest Minority Supplier Development Council
• King County Director Association (KCDA) School Purchasing Consortium
• Washington State Office of Minority and Women’s Business Enterprises

Register online or contact Hans Kueck at (253) 798-2335 or email.

Thank you for Passing Transportation Package

Helping Set a State Freight Mobility Plan

The Chamber has submitted to Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) its comments on the draft Washington State Freight Mobility Plan.

(Click on Image for a Larger View of the Chamber's comments.)

When adopted in its final form, the Freight Plan will be used to guide state and federal policies and investments in state freight systems. The structure and content of the Freight Plan is compliant with the federal Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century (MAP-21) Act guidance for state freight plans, as well as state requirements.

The draft State Freight Plan and the Plan’s Public Comment Form may be found at: http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/Freight/freightmobilityplan.  

The State Freight Mobility Plan applied advanced analysis and extensive public outreach to answers many important questions for the first time:
•    Where are the state’s high-value supply chains? 
•     What roads, highways, freight rail lines, waterways and intermodal facilities make up Washington State’s freight system? How do we objectively define the State’s Freight Economic Corridors?
•     What are the recommended performance goals for the State Freight Economic Corridors? What measures should we use to evaluate performance? 
•     Gauged against current performance, what locations on the Freight Economic Corridors have preservation needs and/or poor mobility performance?
•     How do we prepare for future demand on the Freight Economic Corridors?
•     How should we evaluate the economic impacts of highway projects with freight benefits?
•     What are the state’s priority freight policies, operational and capital project recommendations?
The State Freight Plan is multimodal. It includes the freight rail findings and recommendations of the Washington State Rail Plan, other state transportation plans, and many of the recommendations found in the recently published Washington Freight Advisory Committee report.

With the help of many partners and stakeholders, WSDOT has taken a big step towards a unified state freight planning process in the new State Freight Plan. For the first time WSDOT and the Washington State Freight Advisory Committee invited Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPOs), Regional Transportation Planning Organizations (RTPOs), Tribes, and Ports to submit regional multimodal freight priority projects drawn from existing regional transportation plans and located on the State Freight Economic Corridors.  The Freight Plan, along with other modal plans, will be used to inform the new Washington Transportation Plan.

Gaining Customers & Profit in Trade

The Washington Export Outreach Team - Export 101: From Your Door to the World Seminar event is unique as it walks companies through the exporting process.

It introduces the Local, State and Federal resources to assist them with this process.  These resources can help companies in all stages of the export business continuum including New to Business (NTBs), New-To Export (NTEs), New-To-Market (NTMs), and Expanding Market (EMs) companies.  The companies will also have the opportunity for one-on-one networking with the Local, State and Federal resources at the end of the event.     

What: Export 101: From Your Door to the World Seminar

When: Thursday, August 7, 2014 – From: 8:30 am – To: 5:00 pm
Where: The Rainier Room at the Truitt Building, 102 West Main St. Auburn, WA 98001

Cost: $75.00 per person

Materials and lunch will be provided

Register here as Space is limited.

Individual counseling sessions are available. Contact Zara Castillo for more details

Did you know 95% of potential customers live outside of the U.S.? It’s time to learn how to connect with them.

Attend the Export 101: From Your Door to the World, to access local resources to help your small business expand globally at this full day seminar covering:

Presented by the Washington Export Outreach Team (WEOT): Export Finance Assistance Center of Washington (EFACW), Export-Import Bank of the United States (Ex-Im Bank), Small Business Development Center (SBDC) Export Readiness Center, U.S. Commercial Service, U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), Washington State Department of Agriculture, and Washington State Department of Commerce.

Expeditors International of Washington, Inc. will be providing a logistics presentation.

The workshop will feature presentations on the following topics:

•  Developing an export business plan

•  Determining appropriate international markets

•  Finding qualified buyers, agents, and distributors

•  Determining pricing and methods of payment

•  Mitigating non-payment risks and financing export transactions

•  Shipping your product overseas

(Click on Image for a Larger & Complete View): 

Chamber Hosts CEO Roundtable with Governor

A group of the Chamber's South Sound Business Leaders from a range of industries held a closed-door roundtable at IID on Monday with Governor Jay Inslee.

Participants were given an opportunity to have a frank discussion on Tacoma-Pierce County as well as our state's economic development issues.

The roundtable kicked off with Kelly Ogilvie, the Governor's Senior Policy Advisor, relaying the Governor's strategic priorities for his Working Washington Agenda.

Governor Inslee joined the roundtable, held at one of IID's new conference rooms, after finishing a site tour of IID's headquarters in Tacoma.

Pierce County Purchasing Forum

2013 Greater Pierce County Purchasing Forum 

provides opportunities for businesses looking to win government contracts

Scheduled Guest Speakers:

*Pierce County Executive Pat McCarthy

*Linh Thai, Office of Representative Adam Smith, Ranking Member House Armed Services Committee

Panelists and Exhibitors include:
*Pierce County             
*City of Tacoma
*Tacoma School District           
*Port of Tacoma
*Pierce Transit              
*Go Local Tacoma
*Tacoma /Pierce County Health Dept
*WA Dept. of Enterprise Services
*WA Dept. of Transportation
*U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
*Joint Base Lewis-McChord
*NAVSUP Fleet Logics Center, Puget Sound
*U.S. General Services Administration (GSA)
*U.S Naval Undersea Warfare Center
*Pacific NW Defense Coalition
*Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC)
*Native PTAC
*U.S. Dept. of Commerce Minority Business Development Agency.

Also at the Forum, the Washington State Office of Women and Minority Owned Enterprises will conduct a workshop to assist qualified businesses procure State Certification as a bona fide minority owned business as well as a new category-Small Business Enterprise, a gender and race neutral program.

Date:                Friday, October 4, 2013            

Program:          8:30 a.m. to Noon           

Place:               Environmental Services Building
                        9850 64th Street W.
                        University Place, WA 98467

Directions:       Driving Directions to the ESB GPS Coordinates: Lon: 122° 34' 6.33” W | Lat: 47° 11' 52.8” N
Registration:    Click here to Register or contact Hans Kueck at (253) 798-2335 or email 

167 & 509 Groups Call for Bi-Partisan Transportation Leaders to Act Now

The members of the SR-167 Completion Coalition and the SR-509 Stakeholder Group are calling upon each member of the King and Pierce County delegations to jointly support the Transportation Revenue Package and fund the two projects that have over 40 years of planning, design work, and NEPA analysis behind them.  Further, the groups are calling upon Representative Laurie Jinkins, Representative Dave Upthegrove, Senator Bruce Dammeier, and Senator Joe Fain to assemble both delegations to meet this week and come to a bi-partisan agreement that they will not go home until the Transportation Revenue Package is passed.

The groups stated the time has come for Legislators to put aside their differences and act on the Transportation Revenue Package.  The groups emphasized the need for leadership on the part of the King and Pierce County Legislators.

The SR-509 and SR-167 groups said the collapse last night of the Interstate 5 Bridge over the Skagit River should serve as a wake-up call for action on a comprehensive transportation package now – and that such a package should become more comprehensive to address not only critical projects such as the “Gateways” completion but additional bridge repair, maintenance and preservation as well.

John Parrott, president of Totem Ocean Trailer Express, Inc expressed the views of the group when he stated, “With full sensitivity to those affected by the I-5 bridge collapse over the Skagit River, the need is clear, and our leadership in Olympia must take this opportunity to invest in our transportation infrastructure.  There simply is no more time for excuses, we must act now to protect our jobs, improve freight mobility, stay competitive and avoid what occurred on the Skagit River. We will accept nothing less this year.  Forty years is long enough to wait.”

Members of the coalitions support legislative action now to move Washington state forward and complete these highways, improve freight mobility and job growth, and build modern transportation infrastructure with critical redundancies for safety and reliability.

Click here to read a related News Tribune editorial "SR 167: A job-creating bridge waiting to be built."

167 Rally: Build It Now

Groups from across the State of Washington came together yesterday in a strong show of support for the proposed Transportation Investment Package.  Democrats, Republicans and leaders from business, labor, ports and local government were all represented at the rally in Olympia. 

The event was emceed by the Mayor of Auburn, Pete Lewis, who introduced speakers including Governor Jay Inslee, Congressman Denny Heck, State Senator Tracy Eide, State Representative Judy Clibborn, State Representative Hans Zeiger and State Representative Dave Upthegrove.  Local government officials also spoke in support of the package, as did representatives from business, labor and local ports.

Congressman Heck summarized the theme of the rally when he stated, “We can’t let politics get in the way of this transportation package. Our state needs a modern infrastructure to compete in the 21st-century global economy. Thousands of family-wage jobs are at stake. The time to act is now.”

In taking a look at the crowd on the steps, Scott Mason President ILWU Local 23 observed that, “Usually you would see just labor, or business.  What I see here are all factions of our statewide economic base turning out to support a single idea; invest in our transportation system now or our State will be quickly outcompeted both domestically and worldwide in the movement of goods around the globe.  There are no more excuses – pass the Transportation Revenue Package this session.”

In Washington State, four out of every ten jobs are trade dependent. It’s for this reason that so many disparate groups came together today to show that there is no time to waste on modernizing our infrastructure for 21st-century global trade. Our leaders in Olympia must act now and vote to approve the Transportation Revenue Package.

Pictured (l. to r.): from Tacoma-Pierce County Chamber - Cana Vinluan, Business Advocacy Intern, Tom Pierson, President & CEO and Gary Brackett, Business & Political Manager

Transportation Funding Rally May 20, 2013 Media Coverage

Thursday, May 16:
Business Examiner - http://www.businessexaminer.com/blog/May-2013/Pierce-Chamber-to-join-transportation-package-rally/

Seattle Times (Editorial) - http://seattletimes.com/html/editorials/2021001198_edittransportationxml.html

Sunday, May 19:
News Tribune - http://m.thenewstribune.com/newstrib/db_108680/contentdetail.htm?contentguid=1OB7kY3l

Monday, May 20:
News Tribune - http://blog.thenewstribune.com/politics/2013/05/20/morning-update-special-session-day-8-2/

Business Examiner - http://www.businessexaminer.com/blog/May-2013/Capital-steps-rally-backs-Transport-funding/

Seattle Times - http://seattletimes.com/html/localnews/2021023827_apwaxgrtransportationrally3rdldwritethru.html?prmid=obinsource

KING 5 - http://www.king5.com/news/politics/Despite-rally-for-transportation-package-I-5-bridge-remains-a-concern-208231511.html

KIRO 7:
• http://www.kirotv.com/ap/ap/legislative/inslee-speaks-at-transportation-revenue-rally/nXxTb/
• http://www.kirotv.com/ap/ap/washington/inslee-speaks-at-transportation-revenue-rally/psLLb/
• http://www.kirotv.com/ap/ap/washington/inslee-speaks-at-transportation-revenue-rally/psLLd/
• http://www.kirotv.com/ap/ap/washington/inslee-speaks-at-transportation-revenue-rally/psLLX/
• http://www.kirotv.com/ap/ap/washington/inslee-speaks-at-transportation-revenue-rally/psLLY/
• http://www.kirotv.com/ap/ap/washington/inslee-speaks-at-transportation-revenue-rally/psLLZ/
• http://www.kirotv.com/ap/ap/washington/inslee-speaks-at-transportation-revenue-rally/psLLc/

Q13 Fox - http://q13fox.com/2013/05/20/inslee-if-you-want-roads-bridges-repaired-raise-the-gas-tax/#axzz2TwukLMVR

Kitsap Sun -  http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2013/may/20/inslee-speaks-at-transportation-revenue-rally/#axzz2Twtnxz6E

Wenatchee World Online - http://www.wenatcheeworld.com/news/2013/may/20/inslee-signs-87-billion-transportation-budget/

Spokesman Review -  http://www.spokesman.com/blogs/spincontrol/2013/may/20/inslee-vetoes-part-transportation-budget/

Westport News - http://www.westport-news.com/news/article/Inslee-signs-transportation-budget-4532425.php

Join the Rally to Complete 167!

Groups from across the State of Washington will come together in a bi-partisan show of support for the Transportation Revenue Package on Monday, May 20th at 10 a.m. on the Capitol steps in Olympia.

Interests span from Spokane to Everett, Republican to Democrats, and they all will share the same message that this proposed package is too critical not to do – and that action is needed now - this session.

Governor Jay Inslee, Congressman Denny Heck, Senate and House Transportation Chairs, and other Legislative leaders will address the crowd to voice the belief that this State cannot wait another year or another day to pass this investment package.  Four out of every 10 jobs in Washington are trade-dependent, so it is vital that we meet our freight mobility needs, congestion relief goals, and support economic development so the citizens of this State have family-wage jobs available now and well into the future.

The various interests from across the state – representing business, labor, farm, environment and transit - are putting aside historical and traditional differences.  Participants will implore elected leaders to pass a bi-partisan Transportation Revenue Package during the Special Session and keep the state moving forward.

Where:       Steps of the State Capitol in Olympia

Parking and Shuttle Information: http://www.leg.wa.gov/legislature/Pages/Parking.aspx

When:         May 20, 2013
                    10 a.m.

Who:           YOU!  RSVP today

WATER Coalition Writes Governor

The Chamber believes that the path to shared success for all of our state’s residents is one of sustainable prosperity – balancing protection of the environment with policies and investments that ensure the health of the business community and the creation of living-wage jobs. 

In September 2011, the WA State Department of Ecology began a study of the state’s fish consumption rate (an estimate of the amount of fish residents eat each week).  The more fish residents are assumed to eat, the stricter water quality standards.

If a fish consumption rate is included in the water quality standards rule that results in unachievable standards, human health will not be improved, but the state’s economy will face significant harm. So, the Chamber participates in the Washingtonians for Triple-bottom-line Environmental Regulation (WATER) Coalition.

That is why the Chamber has joined with business, government and community leaders across the state in the WATER Coalition: to ensure that the state uses a science-based approach to set a fish consumption rate and water quality standards that are achievable, affordable and keep jobs in Washington state.

Follows is a recent letter members of the WATER coalition have sent to the Governor. (click on images for a larger view)

SR-167 Completion Coalition First Steps

The executive committee of the SR-167 Completion Coalition, the new stakeholder working group aimed at completing SR-167, met for the first time Friday, January 11.

Pierce County business, labor and community leaders have worked tirelessly to secure the funding necessary to complete SR-167 for decades. The new working group is aimed at bringing together the stakeholders who have been working on this issue into a single group with a unified agenda and message.

The uncompleted portion of SR-167 is a critical missing link in Washington’s transportation system. Without completion, over the next two decades Washington risks losing out on significant amounts of new public and private revenue to other ports along the Pacific coast. The new revenue would be generated primarily by increased containerized cargo traffic.

Completion of SR-167 would also reduce congestion and commute times between Tacoma and Puyallup as well as provide other indirect benefits to the local economy.

The working group named Tim Thompson of Thompson Smitch Consulting Group to coordinate efforts amongst the stakeholders. Thompson is President of the firm and has long been involved in issues that jointly benefit the public and private sectors.

The members of the SR-167 Completion Coalition’s executive committee are as follows:

o   Co-Chair: Dick Marzano, Port of Tacoma Commissioner

o   Co-Chair: John Parrot, TOTE (Totem Ocean Trailer Express)

o   Congressman Denny Heck, Washington’s 10^th Congressional District

o   Pat McCarthy, Pierce County Executive

o   Marilyn Strickland, Mayor of Tacoma

o   Pete Lewis, Mayor of Auburn

o   Glen Hull, Mayor Pro-tem City of Fife

o   Tom Pierson, Tacoma-Pierce County Chamber President & CEO

o   Bill Sterud, Puyallup Tribe

o   Scott Mason, International Longshore and Warehouse Union Local 23

o   Toby Murray, Murray Pacific Corporation

o   Tim Thompson, Project Consultant

SR-167 leads the Chamber's Legislative Agenda priorities. For more information visit the SR-167 Completion Coalition website.

Majority Coalition Caucus

After winning a majority in the State Legislature, the Democratic Party loses control.  As announced in a press release today:
 
"Bipartisan coalition forms majority in Washington State Senate.  Coalition focused on jobs, education and budget with shared committee structure."
 
"Democrat and Republican senators announced today that they have formed a Majority Coalition Caucus to lead the Senate during the 2013 legislative session. Twenty-five state senators have committed themselves to a set of principles that will guide the work of the new caucus, including:

• promoting job growth and a vibrant economy;
• creating a sustainable budget and living within the state’s means;
• providing a world-class education system through reforms and enhancements;
• governing collaboratively to protect the most vulnerable while prioritizing the needs of middle-class Washingtonians; and
• setting priorities for state government and holding it accountable."

While the Majority Coalition Caucus is bipartisan it is made up of 23 Republicans and 2 Democrats.  This effectively divides the two houses of the state legislature with the House having majority Democratic control.  In addition with the election of our new Governor-elect Jay Inslee, the Democratic Party also continues to control the Governor's mansion.

For more on this, please see the Majority Coalition Caucus's press release at: http://src.leg.wa.gov/news/2012/joint/121012MCC.htm 

The News Tribune's Coverage is at: http://www.thenewstribune.com/2012/12/10/2397605/2-dems-to-work-with-gop-to-control.html

Businesses' Ideas for Making Laws

In the midst of this hotly-contested campaign season, we can’t lose sight of the necessity to prepare for the upcoming state legislative session when all the election winners will enact new laws.

 

To be effective in January 2013, the Chamber members need to develop the Chamber’s legislative agenda. This is a great opportunity for you, our Chamber members, to develop the legislative agenda.  The Chamber will be surveying its members for their preferences on issues that will be or should be before the legislature.

 

You are encouraged to promptly share survey ideas:  goals, guidelines, survey questions of policy, issue areas, legislation.  You may submit specific questions and other suggestions to Gary Brackett.

 

Please share with the Chamber your input for a 2013 Legislative Agenda Survey that the Chamber’s Government Affairs Committee will use to prepare an agenda beginning with its next meeting, September 18.

Employment Security’s Shared Work Program Helps Keep Businesses Afloat

More than two-thirds of employers who participated in Employment Security’s Shared-Work layoff-avoidance program in 2011 say the program helped them survive the recession. Another 20 percent of businesses reported that it probably had.

These amazing results show that the Shared-Work Program is one of the most effective tools offered by any government agency to save jobs and businesses. The program allows employers to reduce the hours of their full-time employees by up to 50 percent, while the workers collect partial unemployment benefits to make up for some of the lost wages. This provides business owners with immediate payroll savings without losing skilled employees.

In 2011, 3,176 businesses and more than 38,000 employees were approved to participate in Shared Work, the second-highest year on record. The program also saved an estimated 26,000 jobs and more than $42 million in unemployment-benefit payouts in 2011.

Most employers who responded to Employment Security’s survey reported cutting their payroll by 20 percent or more. Additionally, 52 percent of businesses saved up to two jobs, while 30 percent saved three to five jobs, and another 12 percent saved five to 10 jobs.

Better yet, nearly 100 percent of participating employers said they would apply for the program again and recommend it to other struggling businesses.

If your business is struggling and you’ve been considering layoffs as a way to cut costs, check out Employment Security's Shared-Work Program as an alternative.

Thousands of Washington businesses have used the program to cut costs and hang on to their most valuable resource – their trained employees.

To learn more about the Shared-Work Program, visit www.esd.wa.gov, search on “shared work,” or call 800-752-2500.

By Guest Blogger Paul Trause, Employment Security Commissioner

Jay Inslee, Candidate for Governor, Joins RAMP/SCATBd Meeting

Pierce County’s Regional Access Mobility Partnership (RAMP) and King County’s South County Area Transportation Board (SCATBd) are holding a joint meeting at 8 a.m. on Wednesday, April 4, 2012 at the Port of Tacoma’s Fabulich Center to welcome gubernatorial candidate Jay Inslee.

Representatives from public and private agencies throughout the area look forward to hearing Mr. Inslee’s thoughts on how we can move toward a complete system with sustainable funding.

Both RAMP and SCATBd have encouraged the State Legislature and the Governor’s Office to recognize the importance of a fully functional transportation network connecting the entire South Puget Sound region.





Event Details:

Joint RAMP + SCATBd Mtg
8 – 9 a.m.
April 4th, 2012
The Fabulich Center
3600 Port of Tacoma Road
Tacoma, WA 98424

No cost to attend.

About RAMP:
RAMP is a regional coalition including business, labor, public and private organizations and citizens dedicated to improved mobility in the South Sound and Washington State. Our mission is to ensure a healthy regional economy associated with the development of an effective, efficient transportation system and the resources to sustain it. RAMP is co-chaired by Pierce County Executive Pat McCarthy, Port of Tacoma CEO John Wolfe and Tacoma-Pierce County Chamber President & CEO Tom Pierson. For more on RAMP visit the On RAMP blog.

About SCATBd:
SCATBd is a collaborative effort of local elected officials who are committed to improving the regional transportation system. SCATBd represents an area that encompasses 16 cities, portions of two counties, three transit agencies, the Port of Seattle, nine legislative districts, nearly 700,000 people, and over 300,000 jobs. SCATBd is currently chaired by Algona Mayor David Hill. For more on SCATBd, please visit their website.

Budget Becomes Road Kill

The last special session of the Washington Legislature has made a short-term fix to the state budget and kicked the can down the road to the regular legislative session next year/month.

The battle over the state's budget - over getting the budget into balance - promises to be THE ISSUE OF THE SESSION.

One promising argument in the budget debate comes from the "Road Kill" Democrats.  (The "Road Kill" caucus is so called because they are middle-of-the-roaders who get run over by the left and the right.)

To see how this debate is formed, check out this video by Pierce County's Sen. Jim Kastama.

State Sets Up Small Business Reference Site

The Washington State Department of Commerce website which lets small businesses and individuals search for training, technical assistance, and other types of support is now available.

The address for the site is www.commerce.wa.gov/smallbizhelp . The site allows users to perform a simple search to locate the service or services they are interested in and that are offered in their county, or they can select “statewide” to see all available services.

Local Projects Get Money

Gov. Chris Gregoire and the Washington State Department of Commerce announced today that nine jurisdictions have been granted authority to issue more than $77.8 million of Recovery Zone Bonds and $5.3 million in Small-Issue Private Activity Bonds.  Local projects:

Jurisdiction           Authority           Project

Pierce County         $5.3 million         Frederico Enterprises: Acquisition and remodel of 82,000 square-foot facility to process salmon for distribution to local supermarkets.

City of Tacoma       $9.4 million         Tacoma Dome Parking Facility: Construction of a new parking garage at the Tacoma Dome.

The Bond Cap Allocation Program helps state and local jurisdictions provide tax-exempt bond financing for projects with substantial private investment and resulting in public benefits such as job creation, environmental protection, creating affordable housing, assisting first-time home buyers, and improving public infrastructure.

Learn more about the Bond Cap Allocation and Community Renewal Program here.

Chamber Scores on Ballots--The Final Count

For up-to-date results for this year's elections, check out these links:

• Pierce County Election Results
• Washington State Election Results
• U.S./National Election Results

Chamber Scores on Ballots