Mayors have the best seat in the house when it comes to understanding how trade propels American communities and business. Whether you’re on Main Street in Portland or Peachtree Street in Atlanta; a family farm in South Dakota or a factory floor in South Carolina, trade touches your community in a positive way.
In 2012 alone, every billion dollars of exported goods supported more than 5,300 American jobs while the same amount in services exports supported nearly 4,000 jobs here at home. What’s more is these jobs pay well: on average, export-related jobs pay between 13 and 18 percent more than the U.S. average.
Communities across the country are eager for their hometown entrepreneurs to have the chance to succeed and grow. They’re eager to again feel the wind at the back of the middle class. We need Congress to do its part to establish a process to pass new, higher-standard, job-supporting agreements. From our front-row seats, we want to see local economies thrive – fueled by exports and by the support of Congress to help us reach our full potential in the global marketplace.