By Kevin Johnson
Mayor of Sacramento
City and county officials from across the Sacramento region have been making the annual April trek to Washington for 40 years.
I’m a relative newcomer, looking forward to my third “Cap to Cap” trip this weekend.
So what’s the point?
It’s simple: If we don’t go to Washington and fight to secure federal dollars for our region, other cities and counties across America will take our money and run.
(Listen comments from my weekly press conference)
The idea of competing for federal money is very real. The chase for dollars takes place every day. And often, we lose.
California is a donor state to the federal government. For every dollar our residents send to Washington in taxes, we get 70-something cents back in change.
Other states get their dollar back plus interest – sometimes 30 or 40 percent interest.
There might have been times when it was acceptable for California to donate to other states – I say might – but those conditions certainly no longer exist.
Our state is broke. Along with many of our counties and cities, Sacramento among them.
The Cap-to-Cap trip, sponsored by the good people at the Metro Chamber, gives the region not only a chance to meet with Congressional officials, but with Cabinet secretaries. We build relationships. We forge friendships. We make sure Sacramento gets its fair share.
(Watch this video for an example of how our efforts have paid off)
We also relate our success stories to Washington. We don’t want federal authorities to think we’re just begging for money.
We talk about our collaborative efforts to improve housing and transportation, to create green, clean industries. We talk about our public safety needs, including the repair and security of our levees. We talk about water and industry.
Those are real issues. And being the biggest state, we deserve real solutions. Cap-to-Cap is one tool, but our work won’t stop with one trip.
Guaranteeing our fair share requires regular reminders to Washington – and never letting our federal friends forget the very generous donor state of California now needs help.
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