economic development and the economy On

February 28 the Committee held a hearing

in San Diego to examine how the state’s

Goods movement system supports the

state’s global competitiveness and its

ability to retain high-paying jobs this

was a follow-up to the committee’s last

hearing held in Riverside which examined

the role of trade and foreign investment

on the Inland Empire’s economy

international trade and foreign

investment serve as critical components

of California’s two trillion dollar

economy if California were a country it

would be the 17th largest exporter and

the 14th largest importer of the world

goods movement is critical to the

state’s economy because in the future

much of the state’s economic growth will

be dependent on industries that do

business with foreign markets this makes

having a modern and high-quality

logistical network to support the

transportations of goods and services

essential Goods movement is particularly

important in the Inland Empire because

it lies at the center of two significant

trade corridors

one supports the north-to-south movement

of goods between the US and Mexico and

the other quarter moves goods east to

west linking the US and foreign markets

the Inland Empire with its manufacturing

base and warehouses is a critical link

to the global network of goods movement

a challenge that California faces is

that infrastructure hasn’t kept pace

with the growth in addition California’s

current pay-as-you-go financing model

will not provide the state with the

trade platform that is necessary to be a

full participant within the competitive

global business environment in San Diego

for example the impact of breakdowns in

goods movements has resulted in over 700

million dollars in economic losses to

businesses caused by border delays and

200 million dollars in lost wages to

workers some of the recommendations that

came out of our hearings in San Diego

include how to better advocate for

Southern California goods movements

needs expedite goods movements

using smarter technology and regulations

and enhance the physical linkages in

California to global logistical Network

California’s ability to participate in

the global economy has a lot to do with

the quality of our goods movement.