Washington must stay focused on job creation

Our focus on The Important cannot succumb to the tyranny of The Urgent.

For the next several weeks, Congress and the White House will be consumed by The Urgent: a self- inflicted wound known as the fiscal cliff. While it is crucial, we cannot allow our leaders to lose focus through the haze of budgetary battles on their most important task: Helping 12 million unemployed Americans— and thousands of our neighbors— get back to work.

Regrettably, despite persistently high unemployment, the issues most critical to creating jobs in Silicon Valley and America’s innovation economy— workforce development, tax reform, cybersecurity, energy policy and infrastructure— received scant attention from either presidential candidate in November’s election.

These are the important issues, so vital for job creation, that should command federal attention.

First, Silicon Valley relies on an exceptionally skilled workforce. This requires raising the bar on reading, science and math education, with greater federal support for teacher recruitment and retention, and for better technical training and curriculum tools.

Since Silicon Valley does not have a monopoly on innovation, we also need an immigration system that welcomes the world’s best talent. Sadly, when brilliant foreign students graduate from American universities, we kick them out and send them home to create foreign companies to compete against us. Rep. Zoe Lofgren’s Idea Act provides a catalyst for long overdue- immigration reform, and to enable young innovators to remain in America.

Second, since 95 percent of the world’s consumers reside outside the United States, Congress must recognize that American companies have to compete abroad in fast- growing overseas markets. Current tax policy creates uniquely large disincentives for U. S. companies to bring home the revenue they earn overseas, leaving $ 1.4 trillion in corporate cash locked outside of the American economy. Changes in the tax code could propel hundreds of billions of dollars of investment in U. S. factories, laboratories and jobs, without adverse budgetary impact.

Third, America’s competitiveness and security require improvements to cybersecurity laws and enforcement, along with stronger public- private partnerships to mitigate the risks of private companies sharing information with the government.

Fourth, we need a national energy policy that facilitates a transition from fossil to renewable fuels. Even through the recession, jobs in cleantech grew more than 8 percent a year. We can boost that growth with tax credits for home energy efficiency improvements and green- tech manufacturing, and by empowering homeowners and businesses with real- time energy efficiency information through the smart grid.

Fifth, America’s infrastructure is crumbling. We praise Sen. Barbara Boxer’s bipartisan leadership in passing the twoyear transportation bill, but longer- term priorities remain. Leading the list: securing funding to complete BART’s construction through downtown San Jose to Santa Clara. We’re already putting federal dollars to good use for the first 10 miles of our BART extension to Berryessa, a project slated to finish 18 months ahead of schedule and $ 77 million under budget. Job- boosting infrastructure investment must also include flood protection, broadband, water supply and port expansion.

To press for The Important, the Silicon Valley Leadership Group, in partnership with other local leaders like San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed, will visit Washington, D. C., next week with dozens of executives. We’ll seek to build on the Leadership Group’s successful advocacy of several recent job- boosting initiatives, including landing a regional patent office, securing $ 900 million in federal matching funds for the BART extension and launching free trade agreements with South Korea, Panama and Columbia.

Each day, Silicon Valley CEOs sift through the routinely urgent to focus on the important decisions that will drive innovation and job growth. To persuade Congress to do the same, join us as we build a bridge between the world’s innovation capital and America’s capital. Carl Guardino is CEO of the Silicon Valley Leadership Group and a member of the California Transportation Commission. Sam Liccardo is a San Jose city councilman and a member of the Metropolitan Transportation Commission. They wrote this for this newspaper.