TITLE
Recommendation to respectfully request City Manager to work with appropriate staff to advocate for our Long Beach Workforce through changing local hiring provisions in Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) projects.
DISCUSSION
n the current national and local economic climate, the City of Long Beach needs to remain vigilant at seeking out new jobs for our community.
There are currently federal highway construction projects planned for our City and region, and with these projects comes thousands of new jobs. Due to current Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) rules, local hiring provisions cannot be included in these projects if federal dollars are utilized. In March, the City Council voted to instruct staff to pursue waivers to FHWA rules, particularly for Port-related projects. This effort was unsuccessful, and a new approach to creating new jobs is necessary.
Currently, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa is pursuing a jobs initiative for the Metropolitan Transportation Agency and City of Los Angeles. As part of this initiative, Mayor Villaraigosa is lobbying the federal government to allow local agencies to implement local hire programs for projects with more than a 50 percent non-federal match. This concept recognizes the federal restrictions on using federal funds for local hires, but asked that local governments be allowed to use the non-federal share to promote local jobs. This approach appears to be gaining momentum in Washington D.C. and provides an opportunity for Long Beach to advocate for more jobs.
SUGGESTED ACTION
Approve recommendation.
Respectfully Submitted,
COUNCILMEMBER PATRICK O'DONNELL
FOURTH DISTRICT