President Donald Trump’s trade storm made landfall this past week, creating chaos with the nation’s — and Washington state’s — largest trading partners. At least one thing is clear: The administration intends to use tariffs to achieve outcomes that have nothing to do with international trade. As one of the top trade-driven states in the country, Washington cannot idly endure the economic fallout that will come from these arbitrary decisions.
Much like an actual hurricane, a trade storm is destructive to our state’s major industries, ports and communities that rely on the global marketplace. From seafood processed in Ilwaco, to dairy produced in Sunnyside, to airplanes assembled in Everett, international trade is essential to Washington’s economy and the livelihoods of its residents.
Presidents have broad latitude over trade policy, and individual states have limited influence in these decisions. But we must do something. Washington has a wealth of advantages for international trade that are the envy of most regions: our proximity to Asian markets; production of an array of high-quality products with strong global consumer demand; a vast supply chain network including multiple deep-water and river ports, railroads and trucking; and an experienced labor force in each of these sectors.
Yet for too long, we’ve taken these advantages for granted. Over the last decade, ports such as Savannah, Ga.; Virginia; and Vancouver. B.C., have strategically developed infrastructure and implemented policies to attract more cargo and jobs to their regions — at our expense. By contrast, Washington has neither a strategic plan to invest in our export ports and related industries, nor a comprehensive framework for trade promotion.
It’s time to chart a new course. By creating a state strategy for trade competitiveness, Washington’s export products and our public ports can remain integral to the global market, sustaining and creating jobs across the state. Such a strategy should include:
A plan to make Washington the most competitive gateway on the West Coast by increasing the efficiency of the state’s supply chain: Those who move goods to and from our ports know best where the bottlenecks lie. We should ask these professionals — port, transportation and logistics experts — as well as our farmers and manufacturers to develop a prioritized plan of investments and policies that will move products from our farms, warehouses and factories quickly and cost-effectively. This plan should include metrics to evaluate whether these investments are achieving intended results. And not all bottlenecks require new construction: for instance, adjusting the timing of a road repair or ensuring port terminals are open to receive cargo can decrease costly delays without large capital expenditures. Moving freight more efficiently to and from the ports will also help reduce carbon emissions, a key priority for our communities.
A fresh look at state policies that promote business growth tied to trade: Other regions have policies that attract and promote trade. The Port of Virginia, for example, provides incentives to businesses that increase cargo volumes or invest in trade facilities, as well as a tax credit for creating new, permanent port jobs. These programs are a smart use of public funds, and signal that Virginia takes trade seriously. Tying business expansion incentives to the use of Washington’s public ports — which are owned by taxpayers and tasked with job creation — is worth considering.
How and where we develop industrial land should also be reviewed. Creating an “international trade logistics cluster” in Eastern Washington, utilizing the ports of Pasco, Benton, Walla Walla and Quincy, could help both agricultural exports and attract imported cargo to come through the ports of Seattle and Tacoma on the way to Midwest markets. These Eastern Washington ports have available land for warehousing and distribution centers, access to the interstate and multiple railroads, and are close to our major agricultural growers. In Western Washington, maintaining existing industrial land adjacent to our state’s major export ports for trade-related businesses is essential to remain a competitive global gateway.
A coordinated state strategy for trade promotion: Each year, an array of industry associations, ports and elected officials participate in trade missions to promote Washington’s businesses and products. These efforts could be more impactful if they were coordinated at the state level and focused on a handful of trading partners — for instance, Vietnam, Mexico and India — with the best potential to open new markets for Washington. Having our new governor at the helm of these trade missions would signal that Washington is “open for business.”
We can make Washington more resilient for the next trade storm. Let’s seize this opportunity to create a trade competitiveness strategy that strengthens our position in global markets, ensuring the state’s trade-dependent industries and public ports remain viable and in demand, sustaining jobs across the entire state.