Blog

Work suspended on Panama Canal expansion

According to the Wall Street Journal, work on the Panama Canal expansion has been suspended, due to a dispute over who will pay for $1.6 billion in cost overruns: The pace of work on the project, 70% of which is finished, has been slowing over the past few weeks, as GUPC [the consortium running the […]

Putting the focus back on increasing economic opportunity for all

In my column, I comment on the president’s State of the Union address and the shift in focus from inequality to opportunity. The new opportunity emphasis was previously discussed here and is examined in this New York Times story. I also highly recommend this Robert Samuelson column explaining why inequality is not the problem. To create “ladders […]

Gov's State of the State: Increase minimum wage, boost education spending, fund transportation package

In his State of the State address yesterday, Gov. Inslee introduced themes likely to resonate through the November elections.  Whether they will gain bipartisan  approval in the divided Legislature is less probable. The headlines: a minimum wage increase, $200 million in new education funding (including the oft-suspended teacher COLA) paid for with unspecified tax increases, […]

Scoping hearings for Millennium coal export terminal near Longview

Our recently completed four-part series on trade and transportation underscored the benefits of bulk commodity exports to our state. Among them: Continued export growth in bulk commodities will boost job creation and investment Expanded facilities for coal will benefit other key export sectors, including agriculture The expansion will spur additional private sector spending on rail […]

Culture, railroads, and GE labeling

The Lexington column in this week’s Economist magazine is about the agricultural (emphasis on cultural) differences of the U.S. and Europe, and it is worth reading — especially as Washington voters will decide in November whether to follow the European Union’s lead and require labeling of genetically engineered foods. Rivals in other lands have sniffy […]

WRC trade and transportation series in the news

Last week’s release of the third report in our trade and transportation included a briefing in the Tri-Cities following a meeting with the Tri-Cities Herald editorial board. The Herald’s story was picked up in The News Tribune. Adding more jobs and helping the state compete globally for export trade are among the benefits to expanding […]

New policy brief: Washington Cargo Rides the Rails

We have posted a new policy brief titled Washington Cargo Rides the Rails. This is the third part of our Trade and Transportation series. The brief can be downloaded through this link.

Goethe on trade and transportation

In Export Activity Boosts Washington’s Economy, the second part of our series Trade and Transportation, we look at export activity and the ports. There is stiff competition among ports for export business. Traditionally, Washington’s biggest competitors have been other ports on the U.S. west coast. . . . Washington’s ports face additional competition on the […]

New policy brief: Export Activity Boosts Washington’s Economy

We have posted a new policy brief titled Export Activity Boosts Washington’s Economy. The brief can be downloaded through this link. This is the second brief in our series Trade and Transportation.

New brief: Trade-Dependent Washington Relies on Rail

In a new policy brief, Trade-Dependent Washington Relies on Rail, we take a look at the rail system in Washington, including funding sources and traffic estimates. As we conclude, Our state’s ability to maintain its nation-leading position as a hub for domestic and international trade depends on speedy, safe, and reliable transportation connections. Privately-owned freight […]