T.According to Mayor Bridget Peterson, the workforce is currently the number one concern for Gilbert’s business.

“They can’t find a reliable workforce and can’t get people to apply for these jobs,” Peterson said. “Gilbert’s unemployment rate is about 2.2%, which is very low and in my opinion unhealthy low.”

Peterson voiced his concerns, asking during a discussion with Senator Kirsten at a Jan. 20 roundtable whether there would be federal assistance. cinema.

Cinema met with elected officials and employers from Maricopa County at Phoenix Forge for an hour to discuss their priorities and needs.

Attendees included Maricopa County Supervisors Bill Gates and Jack Sellers, Mayor Chandler Kevin Hartke, Scottsdale Mayor David Ortega, Surprise Mayor Skip Hall, and SRP President David Rousseau.

Cinema said the community college system offered a way to expand the workforce and meet employer demand because it was “effective, more accessible and affordable.”

Avondale Mayor Ken Wise said community college tuition remains high for those who have to pay rent or a car.

“How can we help them?” Weisz said.

Cinema has asked business leaders and mayors to put together a proposal for federal assistance to expand the workforce. This includes many inexpensive ideas, such as adding flexibility to the program, and costly ones, such as competition. Grants to help community colleges offer more programs.

“To help start the conversation about the federal role in expanding our workforce, please put together some ideas of elements and trunks we can do,” Cinema said.

“It’s important to discuss not only our economic security, but also how this helps our national security.”

She said the group’s talk about a coordinated approach to onshore work that has been outsourced to China over the years is widely supported by many members of Congress.

According to Cinema, outsourcing to countries such as China and Russia that do not share the same geopolitical goals as the United States creates national security risks.

She said she needs to convince her colleagues that investing in scaling up will help the county prepare for natural disasters such as pandemics and prepare for a different geopolitical future.

She said for years she had been trying to make the federal Pell Grant program more flexible for financially needy students, but it hadn’t gained traction because it wasn’t a top priority for her colleagues. .

But she was more hopeful that the proposal could be packaged as an economic and national security imperative.

The discussion also focused on Proposition 400, a half-cent sales tax that funds local transportation projects.

government at the time. In July, Doug Ducey vetoed a bill that would set up an election to extend the tax for another 25 years. As it stands, if no action is taken, Proposition 400 will be repealed in 2025.

Cinema acknowledged the importance of increasing the tax, saying it was important to economic growth in the region and needed to make a case for it to voters.

Weise, who heads the Regional Council for the Maricopa Association of Governments, said voters understand the need for transportation, but it is the state legislature that needs to be persuaded to pass legislation calling for elections. I was.

He said the dynamics have changed in the last 15 years since cinema was on state legislature.

“Any advice or tips you have is really helpful on how we can help Congress understand,” he said. So we will reach a critical juncture in the next six months to a year.”

Cinema told the group It is their duty to lobby lawmakers in swing legislative districts and let them know what the extension means “to voters in dollars and cents.”

She also suggested reaching out to mayors of rural communities and speaking with their representatives to support Proposition 400. Because if this bill is repealed, Maricopa County will be competing for the same limited federal budget as these smaller communities.

Because it’s almost impossible for small communities to get federal funding, Marciopa County officials can make them understand that Prop. 400 will benefit if it moves forward, Cinema said. .

Another pressing issue for this group is the ongoing drought and shrinking Colorado River.

For the first time in history, 2021 was declared a water shortage, and Arizona saw quota cuts for the second time this year.

Goodyear Mayor Joe Pizziro asked Cinema if there was an opportunity for California to get help and step up its conservation efforts. The Golden State has the largest share of river water and has not yet been cut.

Cinema said Arizona has the least rights of the seven US states that depend on the Colorado River.

She said 100% of America’s winter vegetables come from Yuma County and has worked hard to educate people about the interconnectedness of the Southwest region.

She said she withheld her support for the Inflation Reduction Act until $4 billion is included in efforts to manage and conserve the Colorado River’s water, which not only serves Arizona, but also six other states.

She has taken steps to address the drought crisis, including last year forming a Water Advisory Board of experts and key stakeholders tasked with finding solutions to Arizona’s worsening water shortages. I pointed out her other efforts.

She also points to the $1.2 trillion Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act passed in 2021, in which she pledges more than $8 billion for infrastructure such as water reuse and storage in the western United States. Secured.

Cinema also informed the group that it is working to reclassify copper as a critical mineral that is critical to economic development and national security, and whose supply chains are prone to disruption.

Copper is a key ingredient used in clean energy technologies such as electric vehicle batteries and microchips. Arizona will produce 71% of the copper mined in the country in 2021, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

The designation enables leasing streamlining and process permitting to facilitate copper exploration, production, processing, reprocessing, recycling and domestic smelting.