23 Jul, 2012

Losing Competitive Edge, U.S. Cities Seek Billions to Upgrade Infrastructure, Create Jobs

U.S. Conference of Mayors Media Release

PHILADELPHIA, PA, 2o July 2012 – Following a three-day meeting here seeking input from the nation’s mayors, the U.S. Conference of Mayors will be issuing an urban agenda for job creation in the days to come and will challenge the presidential candidates and the U.S. Congress to support and pass its recommendations, said USCM President Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter today at the closing session of the mayors’ Summer Leadership Meeting.

“We need Congress and the presidential candidates to do their jobs, so Americans can find and keep their jobs,” said Mayor Nutter. Over 50 mayors attended the meeting and discussed the dire need for our nation’s leaders to focus on infrastructure needs, exports, manufacturing, education and other issues that contribute to job creation.

A new report released on July 19 by USCM shows that the nation’s cities and their metropolitan areas continue to make steady progress toward economic recovery, while sounding a warning alarm that failure to dramatically increase investment in transportation infrastructure could cause skyrocketing costs to families, commuters and businesses, potentially doubling over the next decade.

USCM Vice President Mesa Mayor Scott Smith said mayors have been working alone too long, without the help of Washington, to keep their cities afloat and create jobs. “Let’s invest in our cities and in our people, and we will see the return in the form of job creation. Washington can make smart investments that are fiscally responsible and ensure long-term economic growth.”

Education reform also was a top topic at the meeting where USCM Second Vice President Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson headed a forum discussion on parental involvement in improving schools.

“We are shortchanging our children by not preparing them to compete against a global workforce. We are way behind other industrialized countries and continue to lose ground. We have a lot of catching up to do, yet Congress is running away from these problems,” said Johnson.

Also in attendance today were representatives from the President Barack Obama re-election campaign and Governor Mitt Romney’s campaign. Democratic National Committee Executive Director Patrick Gaspard and Former Chairman of the Republican State Committee of Pennsylvania Alan Paul Novak spoke to the mayors about their candidates’ commitment to cities’ economic recovery.

“While what they said to us matters, only their actions will make a difference in the lives of working Americans struggling to make ends meet,” said Nutter.

The Metro Economies report, released by USCM on Thursday, found that over the next 30 years U.S. metros will grow in population by 32 percent or nearly 84 million people. More specifically, the report predicts that the population will grow by over 50 percent in 59 metro areas, over 75 percent in 21, and will more than double in three. Already, these regions are home to most of the nation’s traffic congestion, costing the average American commuter $713 annually.

During the meeting, mayors argued that the current system of infrastructure cannot absorb this projected growth and failure to dramatically expand it will put U.S. global competitiveness and future economic growth in jeopardy.

One quote from the report:

“Metros are the most congested areas in the US. Investment in roads, rails, and other forms of transportation will help relieve the bottlenecks impeding economic expansion; for example, the 4.8 billion hours of travel delay Americans experienced in 2010, costing our metros $101 billion dollars. This is not just a domestic problem. Our international trade industry depends on advanced infrastructure to handle booming trade across the globe. The widening of the Panama Canal, for example, will allow larger cargo ships to pass through but it also requires heavy investment in our ports by expanding berths and cranes. Further investments will have to be made in the coming years, the value of real US imports and exports will exceed $6 trillion by 2020 up from $4-trillion today.

“Despite the clear benefits of infrastructure investment, the US has not been making this enough of a priority. According to the Congressional Budget Office, public spending on transportation and water infrastructure has been only 2.4% of GDP in recent years, not accounting for the temporary bump that ARRA spending will provide. Europe invests 5% of GDP and China 9% on infrastructure spending. Not only does the US spend a relatively small share on infrastructure, it has been steadily declining since 1960, when it accounted for 3% of GDP. Unfortunately, this is happening at a time when the economy is becoming increasingly globalized, and infrastructure investment provides a clear opportunity to enhance our competitiveness and take advantage of trade in fast growing foreign markets.

“Given the relative funding shortfall, it is no surprise then that America’s infrastructure is becoming less competitive.”

To view the full report and to watch video from the mayors’ press conference during the meeting, please visit: http://usmayors.org/.

 

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The U.S. Conference of Mayors is the official nonpartisan organization of cities with populations of 30,000 or more.

There are 1,295 such cities in the country today, and each city is represented in the Conference by its chief elected official, the mayor. Like us on Facebook at facebook.com/usmayors, or follow us on Twitter at twitter.com/usmayors.

 

Mayors Attending USCM Philadelphia Leadership Meeting: GREGORY A. BALLARD – Indianapolis, IN RALPH BECKER – Salt Lake City, UT STEPHEN BENJAMIN – Columbia, SC

MICHAEL BISSONNETTE – Chicopee, MA J. CHRISTIAN BOLLWAGE – Elizabeth, NJ JAMES BRAINARD- Carmel, IN ALVIN BROWN – Jacksonville, FL CHRISTOPHER CABALDON – West Sacramento, CA ROBERT CLUCK- Arlington, TX

MICHAEL COLEMAN – Columbus, OH MICK CORNETT – Oklahoma City, OK T. M. FRANKLIN COWNIE – Des Moines, IA JOHN DICKERT – Racine, WI BUDDY DYER – Orlando, FL BILL FINCH – Bridgeport, CT GREG FISCHER – Louisville , KY ANTHONY FOXX – Charlotte, NC MIKE GIN – Redondo Beach, CA CAROLYN GOODMAN – Las Vegas, NV PATRICK HAYS – North Little Rock, AR SYLVESTER JAMES – Kansas City, MO HARVEY JOHNSON – Jackson, MS KEVIN JOHNSON – Sacramento, CA MITCH LANDRIEU – New Orleans, LA EDWIN LEE – San Francisco, CA RON LITTLEFIELD – Chattanooga, TN

MARK MALLORY – Cincinnati, OH JOSEPH MCELVEEN – Sumter, SC KIM MCMILLAN – Clarksville, TN KEN MIYAGISHIMA – Las Cruces, NM GUS MORRISON – Fremont, CA LORI C. MOSELEY – Miramar, FL MICHAEL NUTTER – Philadelphia, PA FRANK C. ORTIS – Pembroke Pines, FL ANNISE PARKER -Houston, TX

ED PAWLOSKI – Allentown, PA ANDRE PIERRE – North Miami, FL DONALD PLUSQUELLIC – Akron, OH DAVID POPE – Oak Park, IL JEAN QUAN – Oakland, CA STEPHANIE RAWLINGS-BLAKE – Baltimore, MD CHUCK REED – San Jose, CA ROBERT REICHERT – Macon, GA SCOTT SMITH – Mesa, AZ PAUL SOGLIN – Madison, WI MARK STODOLA – Little Rock, AR MARILYN STRICKLAND – Tacoma, WA JAMES SUTTLE – Omaha, NE ASHLEY SWEARENGIN – Fresno, CA BRIAN WAHLER – Piscataway, NJ SETTI WARREN – Newton, MA