O.C. Challenge: Finding Ways to Share Wealth

Orange County is poised to become an increasingly vibrant, world-class economy, as illustrated by the projection that over the next 20 years it is expected to add 746,000 new jobs. Our export growth outpaces the rest of the Pacific region and the United States as a whole, and our fast-growing high-tech sector boasts the seventh-highest concentration of tech-related jobs among all U.S. metropolitan areas.

While Orange County seems to be an economic engine as we move into the third millennium, many analysts are worried about a variety of problematic trends that may undercut the economic future of our region.

For instance, our economy is creating a growing split between the haves and have-nots. Between 1967 and this year, real wages for men in California grew 13% for the most affluent (in the top 90th percentile) but fell 40% for the working poor (in the bottom 25th percentile).

Orange County also faces a tremendous housing gap; in fact, by 2020 we will witness a 65% growth in jobs but only a 25% increase in housing stock. This causes a continuing urban sprawl as builders find it easier and cheaper to construct new housing farther and farther away, burdening the transportation system and adding to commute times and air pollution.

The adequate funding of needed transportation, water and school infrastructure for the coming decades is problematic because a two-thirds voter approval is needed for any bond issues to finance the infrastructure required for economic growth.

In addition, Orange County is becoming increasingly diverse, as evidenced by our current kindergarten-through-high-school population, which is a “majority-minority.” (That is, most of the students are from so-called minority groups.) This rapid change has brought with it the growing pains of intergroup tension, conflict and violence.

Orange County cannot realize its potential of becoming a world-class economy unless some of these challenges threatening our regional economy are successfully met. To do so, business and government sectors must decide consciously to make certain kinds of investments benefiting the working poor. In making these investments, we can be motivated either by ethical or moral considerations or simply by self-interest.

Certain investment strategies are in the best interests of business and professional people because history has shown that they benefit most from a growing, world-class economy. In addition, a thriving economy cannot afford the long-term consequences of leaving people behind who become isolated and disfranchised.

This is what is needed:

* Business and government leaders must ensure that Orange County increases its housing production to match its projected robust job growth over the next two decades. In particular, we must focus on apartment development affordable to the working poor.

* Orange County needs to invest adequately in transit, especially bus transportation. We need to divert more dollars into enhancing our bus system because it most directly serves the needs of the working poor. To make transit, water and other infrastructure investments more readily, Californians need to eliminate the two-thirds requirement to pass general-obligation bonds.

* In a knowledge-based economy, investing in human capital is as important as investing in physical infrastructure. Californians need to fund the modernization of school facilities, lowering student-teacher ratios and expanding information technology. Education is one key to reducing the growing gap between the haves and have-nots.

* As local governments make land-use decisions, it will be necessary to protect Orange County’s traditional manufacturing base. Messy, undesirable industries provide advancement opportunities for low-income workers and a broader economy less susceptible to downturns in one sector or another.

* One of the more controversial investment strategies is promoting the “living wage” (as opposed to a minimum wage) for the working poor. A living wage can help working poor families pay for basic food and shelter, some health insurance and transportation.

* Finally, we need to better value and seize the economic opportunities posed by diversity. In our global economy, Orange County can benefit from immigrant workers and entrepreneurs who bring new technical and language skills, talents and energies, and who provide access to new capital and consumer markets all over the world. Cultural competencies are a critical asset in the global economy.

By applying these strategies, community leaders can address the investment agenda that will lead us to a more prosperous future. It is true that the human capital and other targeted investments we advocate will benefit most directly the working poor, including immigrants. Nevertheless, it is our view that these investments over the long term will generate high-impact returns, benefiting the economy as a whole and thus all of us.

In a successful world-class economy, there is a symbiotic relationship between the economic interests of the working poor and the interests of business and professional leaders. As community leaders from all sectors of our county come together Thursday at Cal State Fullerton to discuss these issues, let us embrace a new civic spirit and share the economic bounty for the good of all.