Working with the Governor, I have revitalized the California Commission for Economic Development, transforming this important body into a powerhouse for generating ideas that invigorate and enhance our economy, and to create opportunities for future growth, research, development and new markets. As Chair of the Commission, I am working with the Commissioners to explore policies that will lead to a sustainable growth economy, the development of a rational energy policy that attacks the causes and effects of global warming, and an appropriately skilled workforce to ensure a healthy future economy.

After serving as California’s first elected Insurance Commissioner from 1991-1995, I was reelected to the position in 2002. I fought to make the Department of Insurance the best consumer protection agency in the nation, leading efforts to provide consumer rebates, significantly reduce auto rates, add protections for homeowners and stop insurance brokers from overcharging business consumers. I also created an aggressive anti-fraud police force and initiated legislative reforms that ultimately led to a 58% reduction in the cost of workers’ compensation claims

I served as a State Senator and majority leader, authoring laws that protected the environment, reformed health care, created a work-orientated welfare program, revised the tax code and addressed California’s economic competitiveness. I also initiated a successful ballot proposition that provided $18 billion for mass transportation and highways and funded senior centers.

Promote Economic Growth and Innovation

We must expand our research and technological base so that our industries are always at the cutting edge. When I was Senate Chairman of the Joint Science and Technology committee, I pushed the California Research Agenda. The Garamendi Funding Program has financed over $1.25 billion of research facilities on UC campuses.

Create Jobs

We must value manufacturing. It is in the manufacturing of the new innovations that flow from research that high value is added, jobs created and economic growth achieved. Our manufacturing must be nourished, and supported with high skilled employees. Tax policy, government regulations, education and research policy must be aligned to create an environment in which businesses thrive and produce the wealth necessary to support the private and public investments necessary to sustain economic growth and social justice.

Improve Transportation

We must build critical infrastructure. The movement of people, goods, and information is critical to our economic and environmental future. We must invest in public transportation systems as much as we invest in highways. High speed rail, light rail buses, metro systems and highways are essential. Congestion is slowing the economy. In our cities, the speed of travel is declining to 1910 levels. Infrastructure is more than transportation - it is water and sanitation systems, education and research facilities, communication facilities, the flood levees, and the renewable energy systems that we must come to rely upon.

Improve Global Relations

We must be international. California’s economic future is tied to the world. International trade in goods, services, and finance is the mainstay of our businesses and our jobs. Fortunately, California is blessed with the largest population of ethnic people outside of their native lands. This human resource needs to be valued. If we prepare California citizens and businesses, we can become the economic dynamo of the 21st Century.