Letter To Boeing Signed By Majority Of The State's Legislators

Congressman Alan Lowenthal (D-CA) authored a recent letter to Boeing CEO W. James McNerney, Jr., calling on the aerospace firm to select Long Beach, CA as the manufacturing site for the next generation 777x airliner. Congressman Lowenthal, joined by 46 of his California Congressional delegation colleagues on both sides of the aisle in signing the letter, highlighted the many advantages to Boeing in selecting Long Beach as the home of the 777x.

These highlights include an in-place and highly-trained Boeing workforce, which is currently building the Boeing C-17 Globemaster III; an existing 1-million square foot assembly facility; a world-class infrastructure including highways, rail, and one of the most modern ports in the world; an educational system that turns out some of the world's most highly trained aerospace and engineering graduates; and, a highly developed local and regional system of parts and component suppliers.
 
“Long Beach has been intertwined with aviation history for more than a century, including the manufacture of literally tens of thousands of commercial and military aircraft.  There is not a location better suited for producing the 777x than Long Beach,” Congressman Lowenthal said.

“We have the best, most efficient aerospace workforce in the nation. They have proved it over and over again: on environmental issues, on safety issues, and on performance issues. I am willing to do whatever I can and work with Boeing, the City of Long Beach, and Governor Brown to see our highly skilled workforce continue to do what it does best—build world-class aircraft. This would be a win for Long Beach, for California, and for Boeing.”
 
Various versions of the 777 have been manufactured by Boeing since the mid-1990s and the 777x program will see the construction of at least two new highly-modernized versions. The program could last through the 2020s, creating thousands of Boeing manufacturing, support and supplier jobs in Southern California and throughout the state.

Boeing announced in November that it would be seeking bids from interested states and/or cities for the 777x manufacturing work. California Governor Jerry Brown announced earlier this month that California had submitted an official bid to Boeing to bring the 777x program to Long Beach. The bid package included the letter signed by the California Congressional delegation.

The Los Angeles Times reports that among those who chose not to sign were Republican Representative Tom McClintock and John Campbell. McClintock said California would have to "substantially reduce its tax and regulatory burdens" before it could be credible in trying to attract additional Boeing jobs to the state. Campbell said that it is "not the business of Congress to tell a private company where they can best operation at the lowest cost."

(Image provided by Boeing)

FMI: http://lowenthal.house.gov, www.boeing.com