Does Saving NUMMI Mean a New Attitude Will Prevail in Sacramento?
In the wee hours of Friday morning, as our elected leaders were dealing with the state’s massive budget deficit, they took time to pass a resolution supporting the only automotive manufacturing plant west of the Mississippi River. The NUMMI plant in Fremont, California represents nearly 5,000 Bay Area jobs and more than 20,000 jobs around the state. This display of bipartisanship and support for California jobs is just what California needs from those elected to lead out state.
However, while the Legislature will join in harmonious action for this one significant business, they generally fail to show the same level of support for the businesses that employ more than half of California’s workforce and create nearly 75 percent of new jobs. Oh, and small businesses generate more than 15 times the numbers of patents per employee as compared with larger businesses, so we know where the future of biotech, greeentech, nanotech, and any other technology can be found. Where is the desperate support for the hundreds of thousands of small employers and millions of solo entrepreneurs who struggle under near Depression-level economic conditions, a credit market unwilling to lend, and government-imposed regulatory costs and taxes?