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Evans to address regional economic summit
Commerce secretary to tout Bush policies at forum covering six southwest Alabama counties
by Jeff Amy, Mobile Register
November 16, 2003

U.S. Commerce Secretary Donald Evans will promote President Bush's economic policies as he headlines an economic summit Monday in Mobile

The meeting has been put together by U.S. Rep. Jo Bonner, R-Mobile, to look for ways to improve, link and repo sition the economies of the six Southwest Alabama counties in his district. Bonner is pushing regionalism as a route to improve the area's business prospects.

"It's so important to think past one ZIP code, one county," Bonner said. "With timber, chemicals, shipbuilding and aerospace, we have a much more diverse economy than people realize."

The meeting will be coordinated by a Washington, D.C., nonprofit called the Public Forum Institute. The group conducts such summits across the country, usually sponsored by congressmen or other federal officials.

Mark Marich, a spokesman for the institute, said it will issue a final report on the summit within about a week, including a to-do list to im prove Southwest Alabama's economy. Besides a general session, there will also be four concurrent morning workshops looking at:

• Strengthening existing businesses and encouraging innovation.

• Expanding opportunities for women and minority business owners.

• Developing the work force.

• Attracting new business and entrepreneurs.

Dan Nelson, a spokesman for Evans, said the secretary was likely to highlight the economic progress he sees. That has been Evans' message in recent weeks, as his boss has geared up for re-election in 2004.

"He's going to provide an economic update and emphasize that the president is not going to be satisfied until every American seeking a job can find one," Nelson said.

Nelson also said Evans would recognize the leaders of four local organizations who are leaders in promoting international trade.

Evans has been involved recently in efforts to urge China to change what he calls unfair trade policies. "Trade must be fair -- a two-way street," Evans said last month in Beijing. The Commerce Department has also been at the forefront of Bush administration efforts to protect American manufacturing, though the efforts have been criticized by some industry leaders as inadequate.

Bonner noted that the migration of manufacturing jobs has harmed the region's economy. While Baldwin County gained 3,500 jobs from August 1998 to August 2003, every other county in the region lost jobs, according to state employment statistics. Mobile County lost 7,900, or 4.1 percent of its jobs. Washington County lost 740, or 13.8 percent ,of its jobs.

"Sadly, in this global economy, companies can find even lower wages offshore," Bonner said. "We've got to play the hand that's dealt us."

Bonner's district includes all of Mobile, Baldwin, Escambia, Monroe and Washington counties, and parts of Clarke County.

The first-term congressman, also up for reelection in 2004, echoes the optimism of the Bush administration.

"There are a lot of signs the downturn is behind us," Bonner said, citing recent decreases in new unemployment claims and increases in orders for manufactured goods. "The challenge is, how do we ensure that as the national economy improves, the local economy improves as well."

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