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State Lt. Governor Gavin Newsom Meets with Port Leaders to Talk Jobs

Friday, 18 November 2011
Contact: Ronald Powell (619) 686-6200, (619) 400-4789

California Lt. Governor Gavin Newsom told Port of San Diego leaders Friday, November 18, that maritime jobs represent a "growth area" for a Golden State in need of new employment opportunities.

In a meeting at the Port District's Administration Building, Newsom said that poverty rates are up in California and job growth is gradual. He said the state has yet to recover from the toughest part of the recession when it lost 1.4 million jobs. So far, he said, only 250,000 jobs have been reclaimed.

"We've got state lawmakers who are going on vacation when this is a 'code red' situation,"Newsom said in talks with Board of Port Commissioners Chairman Scott Peters, Port District President Wayne Darbeau and other Port of San Diego executives. Also in attendance was John Pasha of Pasha Automotive Services, a major employer at the port's National City Marine Terminal.

Newsom was in San Diego to address a San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce luncheon as part of its "Good Government Series" discussions. His topic was jobs and economic growth in California.

Newsom said that America's ports deserve infrastructure funding to improve both import and export business. That kind of business produces good-paying jobs. He noted that the Chinese are gaining international attention by investing heavily in their maritime business sector.

"We're envious of China because that used to be us," Newsom said. "They've figured out our secret sauce."

He decried the recent fee hikes at the California State University System, saying that the state's public colleges have been a "conveyor belt" for innovation, commercial success and job creation. By cutting university faculty and staff, and putting a college education beyond the reach of students, "you're killing our future," he said.

Part of California's problem in developing new jobs is that it has closed its trade offices in foreign countries as a cost-savings measure. At the same time, Texas, Utah and other states have set up offices in California to poach California businesses.

But a more global issue is the focus of state lawmakers on keeping the state solvent instead of working to cultivate growth, Newsom said.

"It's not about solvency, it's about greatness," he said. "Instead, we're arguing to be average."