California Forward has laid out a Path Forward for California, and we are joined by the Silicon Valley Leadership Group (SVLG). SVLG President and CEO, and newest CA Fwd Leadership Council member, Carl Guardino laid out the SVLG’s vision in a thoughtful column published in Sunday’s Contra Costa Times:
“As recommended reading, the Silicon Valley Leadership Group offers interested Californians our recommendations www.svlg.orgto strengthen California’s economy. Here are some highlights:
- Create a Plan: From Bangalore to Beijing, Austin to Boston; regions, states and nations have economic development plans. Their presidents and governors are their CEOs — chief economic officers — ensuring that the plan is followed, updated and followed again. Gov. Brown has the savvy, substance and skills to strengthen and sell California. Step one is empowering a cabinet-level leader singularly focused on building California’s “Economic Competitiveness Strategy,” engaging employers from our top industry clusters, and performing to plan. California must be more competitive in attracting new companies and in encouraging existing ones to expand here.
- Steal good ideas: Appropriately, plagiarism is illegal in college, but it’s open game when we see smart ideas in other regions and states. Oregon, for instance, has an Office of Regulatory Streamlining, annually saving employers tens of thousands of pages of paperwork and tens of millions of dollars, without weakening its health, environmental or safety standards. Arizona, Oregon, New Mexico and numerous other states have some form of a “Single Sales Apportionment Factor,” a tax policy that rewards — rather than penalizes — employers who grow jobs, equipment and facilities in their states. California must incorporate existing ideas that are applicable to the Golden State.
Carl Guardino is president & CEO of the Silicon Valley Leadership Group; member of the CA Fwd Leadership Council; and host of “The CEO Show” on 1590 KLIV.
