On behalf of more than 350 companies that drive America’s innovation economy from the heart of Silicon Valley, SVLG’s Peter Leroe-Muñoz urges elected officials in Washington to pass the CHIPS Act of 2022 and secure America’s semiconductor future and resilience.
Leveraging a record state budget surplus, SVLG partnered with Save the Bay, the Bay Area Council, Together Bay Area, Valley Water, and San Mateo County to make a push for critical funding for flood protection and restoration projects to meet the mounting climate related challenges we are now experiencing. We rallied local elected leaders throughout the Bay whose cities are directly impacted by rising waters and met with Bay Area legislators to champion additional funding. As a result of our efforts, this year’s budget deal has a historic $120 million dollar commitment dedicated to address Seal Level Rise in the San Francisco Bay.
Angel Gonzalez and Charles Mackin are part of Career Horizons, a statewide, online mentorship initiative that the Silicon Valley Leadership Group, the Bay Area Council, and Valley Vision started in 2021. The program pairs professionals with Black and Latinx community college students for one-on-one career guidance meetings. The goal: expand BIPOC students’ professional networks and career horizons.
SVLG, BAC and Valley Vision worked with Umoja and Puente, the lead organizations serving Black and Latinx students in California community colleges, to co-design the program and serve as trusted intermediaries to students.
A trio of leading Silicon Valley business leaders urge Congress to reject proposed antitrust legislation that could harm small businesses and have a chilling effect on the innovation ecosystem that is a backbone of the nation’s economy.
Facing a shortage of engineering talent, in 2014 LLNL partnered with the college of Las Positas, the Alameda County Workforce Board, and the nonprofit Growth Sector to create Vets2Tech, a program helping to train their next generation of engineers and engineering technicians.
For the last eight years, Vets2Tech has worked with Bay Area community colleges to develop math and physics curricula and technology training programs, and then funnel graduates, mostly veterans, into SVLG member companies including LLNL and LAM Research. The program quickly became a win-win for LLNL, LAM and the participating veterans, who had mechanical know-how, leadership skills, and security clearances, but lacked the resume they believed they needed to succeed in tech.
Fueled by the pandemic, the recent wave of employee turnover known as “The Great Resignation” has caused a major shortage of employees throughout the economy.
Technology companies have received more than their share of the instability, with 72% of tech/IT workers thinking of changing jobs or exploring other opportunities in the next 12 months, compared to 55% for other careers in the U.S., according to a 2021 survey of 1,200 tech employees by Talent LMS and Workable.
SVLG made waves in the infrastructure policy arena with its largest forum yet on April 27, with appearances by top Biden Administration officials on transportation and housing policy and other leading California voices on those important issues.
Viewers of the online event enjoyed an array of fascinating conversations with guest speakers including Adrianne Todman, Deputy Secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development; Katie Thomson, Director of Bipartisan Infrastructure Law Implementation at the U.S. Department of Transportation; and Toks Omishakin, Secretary of the California Transportation Agency. The Forum also featured special appearances by Governor Newsom, CA Senate President Pro Tempore Toni Atkins, Bay Area Transportation icon Rod Diridon, Sr., and other important voices.
According to UC Berkeley’s Institute of Government Studies and the Los Angeles Times’ April 2022 poll, fifty-six percent (56%) of registered voters “support the state continuing to build the high-speed rail project.” This week the California High-Speed Rail Authority (Authority) Board of Directors has the opportunity to listen to voters – invest in affordable housing, make a significant dent in greenhouse gas emissions, and continue California’s legacy as an innovation hub for the world. Approval of the San Jose to Merced environmental documents brings the state closer than ever to giving Californians what they want: electrified high-speed rail that alleviates congestion, avoids high gas prices, and addresses the climate crisis.
California’s housing affordability crunch ranks at the top of all serious public policy and business competitiveness agendas. The state’s median home price set a new record in March 2022 at $849,080, which is out of reach for most—only 25% of Californians can afford a median priced home, compared to 50% nationally. Here in Silicon Valley, the median home price in Santa Clara County was a whopping $1.6 million in March 2022, up nearly 20% from the previous year, according to Redfin.
In an Executive Roundtable moderated by Jason Baker, SVP of Health, Housing and Transportation Policy on April 4, special guest Congressman Ro Khanna spoke to SVLG members about his key concerns and initiatives, including Biden’s Build Back Better framework, well-crafted antitrust legislation, and U.S.-based manufacturing.
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