Dennis Miller (President, Artmil) and myself had the delectable experience of attending the 34th Winter Fancy Food Show, January 18 – 20, 2009, at the Moscone Center in San Francisco. The Fancy Food Shows (Winter Show in San Francisco and Summer Show in New York) are produced by the National Association for the Specialty Food Trade (NASFT) and attract exhibitors and buyers from around the world. We were impressed by the Natural & Organic Pavilion with over 100 exhibitors. Over 170 exhibitors expressed interest in Blue Mountain Station, requesting to be placed on our E-Newsletter list, confirming our opinion that Blue Mountain Station is not only unique, but a great idea!

It was interesting to note that even with the current economic uncertainties, the specialty food folks are cautiously optimistic. Why shouldn’t they be? Specialty foods are the darling of the food processing industry.

Blue Mountain Station is a fabulous dream coming closer to reality every day. Our finance committee is dividing the project into phases and pinpointing sources for each phase of the project. A request for Phase I infrastructure funding is being prepared for a late spring submittal. Property acquisition is still under negotiations, but great progress is being made. Two members of our team were interviewed on Northwest Public Radio, and the story was picked up on other public broadcasting stations in the region. WOW do a lot of people listen to Public Radio – I’ve heard more feedback from that press item than all the others combined.

Two members of our team attended the Fancy Food Show in San Francisco, California, in January and visited with many businesses interested in Blue Mountain Station. While this was not an official recruitment trip, the show gave our team members an opportunity to find out what aspects of our project are attractive to businesses, and what areas of concern we may need to address. All in all it was a very successful trip!

A local couple interested in holistic ranch management has agreed to spearhead a lecture series on organic and natural foods, energy efficiency, and other related subjects for community education at our local theater.

Our team has also been meeting with officials in Walla Walla, strengthening the ties this project has with the entire Walla Walla Valley and the burgeoning wine industry. We continue to get very positive feedback from regional partners. Thank you for your interest in our project. We are excited about moving forward!

When it comes to manufacturing the Golden State has become a bit tarnished, while the Evergreen State keeps getting greener and greener (as in the color of money and environmentally friendly, “green” technologies).

Washington ranks #3 in Forbes “Best States for Business 2008”. California ranks #40!

Forbes “Best States for Business 2008”

	2007 Rank	Business Cost Rank	Labor Rank	Regulatory Environment	Economic Climate	Growth Prospects	Quality of Life
Washington	5	28	2	6	7	2	25
California	34	50	25	45	12	14	28

Source: Forbes (www.forbes.com)

 

The Beacon Hill Institute’s Eighth Annual Competitiveness Report placed Washington at No. 6 when it comes to attracting and keeping businesses while providing high standards of living for workers. California ranked No. 25!

The Beacon Hill Institute’s Annual Competitiveness Report…..Three Year Trend

	2008	2007	2006
Washington	6	7	13
California	25	24	20

Source: The Beacon Hill Institute (www.beaconhill.org)

 

The Tax Foundation’s State Business Tax Climate Index ranks Washington as the 11th best business tax climate in the United States. California ranked 47th!

The Tax Foundation’s State Business Tax Climate Index…..Five Year Trend

	2008	2007	2006	2004	2003
Washington	11	12	13	11	12
California	47	46	46	39	44

Source: The Tax Foundation (www.taxfoundation.org)

 

The 2007 State New Economy Index The Information Technology & Innovation Foundation Overall Washington ranks #4 (same as 2002), California ranks #5 (down from #2 in 2002)

	IT Professionals	Managerial,  Professional,  Technical Jobs	Workforce Education	Immigration of Knowledge Workers
Washington	10	16	11	5
California	16	17	12	33

 

	Manufacturing Value-Added	High-Value Traded Services	Export Focus of Manufacturing & Services	Foreign Direct Investment
Washington	3	31	1	33
California	20	6	9	23

 

	Package Exports	“Gazelle Jobs”	Job Churning	Fastest Growing Firms
Washington	22	9	2	10
California	19	10	28	9

 

	IPOs	Entrepreneurial Activity	Inventor Patents	Online Population
Washington	22	16	18	6
California	3	9	1	34

 

	Internet Domain Names	Technology in Schools	E-Government	Online Agriculture
Washington	8	27	10	11
California	4	48	21	19

 

	Broadband Telecommunications	High-Tech Jobs	Scientists and Engineers	Patents
Washington	11	9	11	3
California	2	7	12	4

 

	Industry Investment in R & D	Venture Capital
Washington	31	3
California	5	2

Sources: Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation (www.kauffman.org)
The information Technology & Innovation Foundation (www.innovationpolicy.org)

 

Washington ranks #18 on CNBC’S 2008 “America’s Top States for Business” List. California ranks #25!

	Cost of Business	Workforce	Economy	Education	Quality of Life
Washington	35	37	11	17	9
California	48	21	7	31	4

 

	Technology & Innovation	Transportation	Cost of Living	Business Friendliness	Access to Capital
Washington	6	22	36	34	4
California	1	16	49	48	1

Source:  CNBC (www.cnbc.com)

 

The Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council’s Small Business Survival Index 2007 ranks Washington #4 and California #49 in state rankings from the Friendliest to the Least Friendly Policy Environments for Entrepreneurship.

Breakdown of state rankings from the friendliest to the least friendly

	Washington	California
Top Personal Income Tax Rates	1	51*
Top Capital Gains Tax Rates	1	51*
Top Corporate Income Tax Rates	1	42
Top Corporate Capital Gains Tax Rates	1	43
State and Local Property Taxes	25	13
State and Local Sales,  Gross Receipts and Excise Taxes	49	29
Adjusted Unemployment Taxes	43	1
Number of Health Insurance Mandates	43	43
Electric Utility Costs	4	45
Worker’s Compensation Benefits Per $100 of Covered Wages	49	47
Crime Rate	49	27
Number of Government Employees	14	9
State Gas Taxes	46	51*
State and Local Government Five-Year Spending Trends,  1999-00 to 2004-05	18	45
Per Capita State and Local Government Expenditures,  2004-05	44	47
Highway Cost Effectiveness,  2005	32	44

*Study includes the District of Columbia
Source: Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council (www.sbecouncil.org)

 

The Pew Center on the States’ Government Performance Project 2008 gives Washington an A-. It gives California a C!

	Washington	California
Money:  Long-Term Outlook,  Budget Process,  Structural Balance,  Contracting/Purchasing,  Financial Controls/Reporting	A-	D+
People:  Strategic Workforce Planning,  Hiring,  Retaining Employees,  Training and Development,  Management Employee Performance	A-	C-
Infrastructure:  Capital Planning, Project Monitoring,  Maintenance,  Internal Coordination,  Intergovernmental Coordination	B+	B-
Information:  Strategic Direction,  Budgeting for Performance,  Managing for Performance,  Performance Auditing and Evaluation,  Online Services and Information	A	C+

Source: The Pew Center on the States (www.pewcenteronthestates.org)

 

Tax Comparisons

Tax Category	Washington	California
C Corporation Income Tax	None	8.84%
S Corporation Income Tax	None	1.5%
Limited Liability Income Tax	None	$979 – $8814
Partnership Income Tax	None	Federal Law
Individual Income Tax	None	9.3% > $35,792 S 9.3% > $71,584 M
Motor Vehicle Licenses	$30.00	$27.00 + 2% of Value
Sales and Use Tax	7.6% – 8.5%	8.25%
Occupational Tax	0.484%	None
Real and Personal Property Tax	$9.27 – $18.27 per $1,000.00 Value	$9.49 – $27.97 per $1,000.00 Value
Realty Transfer Tax	1.28%	$0.55/$500
Unemployment Tax	0.97% – 5.4% up to $30,500.00	0.7% – 5.4% up to $7,000.00

Source: Inland Northwest Economic Alliance (www.inlandnorthwestregion.com)

 

Facts About Manufacturing in Washington and California

• Average annual manufacturing wages in Washington in 2007 were $58,206. Average annual manufacturing wages in California in 2005 were $63,020!
• Manufacturing growth in Washington (2001 – 2006) was 24.7%. Manufacturing growth in California (2001 – 2006) was 15.3%!
• Manufacturing share of Washington GDP is 13.7%. Manufacturing share of California GDP is 9.8%!

Source: National Manufacturers Association (www.nam.org)

 

2006 Cost Index for Washington and California

100 = National Average

	Overall	Wage	Tax	Industrial	Office	Electricity
Washington	102.70	104.30	105.40	116.00	136.20	74.00
California	122.90	114.80	120.60	141.40	141.40	134.70

Source: California Manufacturers & Technology Association (www.cmta.net)