Jobs & Economy
My number one priority in Congress is creating jobs and growing our economy. <br />
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<b>Investing in Infrastructure</b><br />
One of the best ways to create jobs is to put people to work fixing our roads, bridges, overpasses and waterways. That is why last Congress I co-authored an infrastructure jobs bill in the House that was fully paid for and would have funded transportation and infrastructure projects for two years. The U.S. Department of Transportation estimated that the legislation would have created 177,500 jobs in California alone.<br />
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I also co-authored a bipartisan port improvement bill that has gained 187 co-sponsors. This legislation would fund dredging projects, creating jobs for the people who do the dredging and helping our local economy by making our marinas, ports and harbors more accessible for business.<br />
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Not only do smart investments in infrastructure and port improvements create jobs, but they also reduce hidden taxes on businesses and communities. A March 2013 report by the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) found that the poor condition of California's roads costs drivers nearly $14 billion a year in repairs and operating costs. <br />
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We have to build an economy that can compete long-term. One of the best ways to do that is to make sure our district continues to grow as a national leader in the development and manufacturing of clean energy technology. <br />
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<b>Property-Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) Program</b><br />
I am working with colleagues on both sides of the aisle on a program called the Property-Assessed Clean Energy program, or PACE, that’s seen tremendous success in parts of our district. <br />
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In 2009, I worked to get PACE language into the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). This language allows property owners to finance the purchase and installation of energy retrofits to their homes and businesses. <br />
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This program provides homeowners and businesses with a way to pay for retrofits to make buildings more energy efficient. And it doesn’t cost taxpayers a dime. <br />
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Since Sonoma County has started its PACE program, more than 2,000 commercial, residential, energy efficiency and water conservation projects have been undertaken. The county estimates the retrofits have pumped more than $58 million back into the local economy and have supported more than 700 jobs. <br />
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Today, I am working to pass additional legislation that will make sure every county has an opportunity to start a successful PACE program. <br />
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<b>Protecting Geothermal Royalties</b><br />
We have to protect geothermal energy and the money it bring into our communities. When geothermal revenue sharing was suspended in 2010, I authored and passed legislation that restored the payments to counties. <br />
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I am continuing to work with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to protect geothermal revenues from future budget cuts. <br />
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Geothermal energy is good for our environment, reduces our dependence on foreign oil, and helps our economy by spurring green job creation. <br />
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In 2011, our district received nearly $2 million in geothermal royalties. That money is used to pay for governmental services, such as road maintenance, public safety and law enforcement, related to the geothermal field. <br />
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Repealing geothermal royalty payments is a short sighted plan that will do nothing to reduce our deficit. And it is not fiscally responsible. It would kill jobs, cripple future green job growth, and slow our economic recovery – all of which will only make our deficit larger. I will continue to fight against these cuts, because if a community invests in developing geothermal energy, they deserve to get their fair share in returns. <br />
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<b>Supporting Small Businesses</b><br />
I am working to support our district’s small businesses. Last Congress I introduced bipartisan legislation to simplify the tax code for small businesses. No matter which side of the aisle you’re on, we should all be able to agree that simplifying taxes for small businesses is good policy. This bill will save small businesses time, paperwork and headaches during tax season by expanding cash accounting, allowing them to focus their efforts on what they do best – growing their businesses – not on complicated accounting practices.<br />
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<b>Investing in Education</b><br />
Finally, for our long-term economic growth, we must invest in education and worker retraining so that our nation continues to have the world’s best entrepreneurs and innovators to compete in a global economy. That is why I have consistently supported funding need-based grants at their highest level so students can afford college. And it is why I co-authored legislation that would freeze some student loan interest rates and prevent them from doubling. This will save an average middle-class family about $1,000 a year. <br />
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Infrastructure, investments in new economic engines like energy, support for small businesses, and education – these are the keys to creating jobs and building a strong American economy for years to come.
2014 omnibus appropriations bill provision calls for the nation's military to purchase flags made in the country.
North Coast Congressman Mike Thompson criticized federal regulators Wednesday for failing to answer his questions about the growing Rancho Feeding Corporation meat recall.
Thompson joined a chorus of food safety experts and North Bay ranchers who have complained the U.S. Department of Agriculture is releasing few details about the reasons underlying the decision to recall all beef processed at Rancho's Petaluma plant last year.
Soldiers carry them into battle, fly them high over foreign bases, and triumphantly carry them in processions, but those stars and stripes, until now, have often been made in China.
That irony spurred North Bay Congressman Mike Thompson (D) to write legislation requiring flags purchased by the Department of Defense (DoD) be 100 percent "Made in America." That legislation is now law, signed as part of the 2014 omnibus appropriations bill.
Sometimes it just takes an act of Congress to get things done. That's exactly what happened in the North Bay. A Rohnert Park flag factory helped to change the law, as well as the lives of those working there.
You might assume that every flag is made in America. Not quite. And that's at the heart of the story.
Strips of red, white and blue fabric lay draped on tables and piled in bins, making the North Bay Industries warehouse in Rohnert Park look like the set of "The Colbert Report" on Patriot Day.
The 28 workers busily stitched the colorful cloth into American flags 3 feet wide and 5 feet long, big enough to cover the coffin at a veteran's funeral.
Every part of these flags — from the upland cotton grown in the U.S. South, to dye added in South Carolina, to the American brass grommets, to the painstaking sewing in Rohnert Park — is American.
The Sonoma Valley Community Health Center recently broke ground on a new, 18,000-square-foot facility that will help it treat an expected influx of patients amid expansion under health care reform, nearly tripling the size of its current location.
The new location, at 19270 Sonoma Highway in a former strip mall, will nearly triple the size of the health center upon completion, expected in June for an opening in July, officials said. It will replace the current center at 430 W. Napa St.
U.S. Rep. Mike Thompson (CA-5) today announced a $2,475,991 federal Assistance to Firefighters Grant (AFG) for the Rodeo-Hercules Fire Protection District (RHFD). The grant was awarded through The Assistance to Firefighters Grant (AFG) Program of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The funds are part of an AFG program called Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER).
WASHINGTON, DC – Northern California and Bay Area RepresentativesGeorge Miller (CA-11), Mike Thompson (CA-5), Doris Matsui (CA-6), John Garamendi (CA-3), Jerry McNerney (CA-9), and Anna Eshoo (CA-18) today issued the following statement after legislation aimed to help West Coast farmers and communities during drought conditions was introduced in the U.S. Senate:
WASHINGTON D.C. – U.S. Rep. Mike Thompson (CA-5) today released the following video statement on Black History Month. Video and a full transcript are below.
“Hi, I’m Mike Thompson.
“This February, I hope you’ll join our community in celebrating Black History Month by recognizing a defining moment in our nation’s history: the 50th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act.
Seventy-five percent of California is in an "extreme" or "exceptional" drought. CBS News' Bill Whitaker reports on how Washington is turning the crisis into a campaign issue.