Elect Andre Wang

Bess Wills discusses the state of business with Jim Huffman.

I visited several businesses in my district on Wednesday, August 25, and I have to say, the experience was truly enlightening. Not only is it great to see our valuable businesses in person, it’s eye-opening to hear from owners and managers exactly how government programs are actually hurting our community and families, right here in District 50.

Touring with Jim Huffman, Oregon Republican candidate for U.S. Senate, was a special privilege. It felt a bit like a reunion: Jim was my law school dean at Lewis and Clark College’s Northwestern School of Law and, to this day, I still call him “Dean.”

We started our day with the management team of Weston Dealerships, including brothers and senior executives Jan and Jay Weston. During the hour-long meeting, the focus quickly became the federal government’s impact on their business.

A major example was “Cash for Clunkers,” a program designed by the federal government to increase U.S. automotive sales. Though the program did spike sales temporarily, it actually created a disaster with two unintended consequences.

First, because of the surge of older cars being traded in and the piles of paperwork the federal government required the dealership to file, Weston actually suffered a net loss from Cash for Clunkers—a big hit for a local, family-owned business.

But the impact on the district was the most compelling since families—especially those most in need—were directly affected. Cash for Clunkers required the dealerships to completely destroy the engines of the clunkers that were turned in. Weston took in a couple hundred of these cars, about half of which were truly decent, re-sellable cars. Other car dealerships were doing likewise, and suddenly low-income people who needed an affordable car couldn’t find one. They were instantly priced out of the market during really tough economic times.

Overall, the conversation centered on the proper role of government in business. Too many of our elected officials have lost sight of a fundamental principle: Government should be creating a favorable business climate so our neighborhood businesses can thrive, grow and create more jobs. Oregon’s legislature needs to stand up for our local businesses, even in the face of federal pressure to comply with policies that ultimately harm our district’s working families.

After visiting at Weston, Jim and I went to Gresham Ford, where I was excited to meet with Bess Wills, owner and general manager, and her son, Preston Wills, sales manager. Bess is a certifiably beloved community leader in Gresham, and she’s not one to mince words. She wasted no time in sharing how the government is impact her business negatively.

Bess produced binders of financial statements that showed, in black and white, how the current level of taxation is crippling her business. She spoke with emotion about how much she wants to protect her 54 employees and how she cares about the families that those people represent, but big government is making that more and more difficult every year.

Another big impact to her business came from the passing of Measure 67. This measure allows Oregon to tax businesses not on their profits but on their revenue. That’s devastating for a high-volume, low-margin business like a car dealership. Thanks to Measure 67, even if the dealership suffers a major loss this year, it will be taxed heartily. Talk about hitting you when you’re down!  This tax plan is a great way to shutter businesses and lose jobs in our district, and we just can’t afford that right now. Our people depend on these jobs!

Bess is also frustrated with how elected officials, at all levels of government, lose interested in being responsive once they are elected. She implored both Jim and me to communicate with our constituents and respond meaningfully when called, instead of throwing out generic responses. I absolutely agree!

It’s easy to make jokes about car dealers, but meeting with Bess reminds me of what an important role they play in the economics of our district. Gresham Ford provides products and services that our community wants and needs and hires our local people to do it. It’s essential to our economic future that we help our local employers thrive!

After lunch with the mayors of Troutdale and Wood Village, as well as local residents and city councilors, we moved on to the newly opened FedEx facility in Troutdale.  Formerly the Alcoa/Reynolds Aluminum plant, this 400,000-square-foot facility become operational only two weeks ago. Hub manager Rob Brigham toured us through an intricate network of conveyors and chutes as packages whizzed by at 30 mph. Once FedEx operations on Swan Island are consolidated to the Troutdale facility, we’ll have 400 employees here. What a boon for east Multnomah County!

It was great to end the day with a vision of how our community will enjoy greater prosperity if we implement policies that encourage businesses move to or open in our district and create new and better jobs for our struggling families.

With that prosperity comes all the things we want for our community, from greater public safety and personal security to the best public education, services and programs.

That’s my goal. Will you join me?

Andre (right) takes a closer look at FedEx's Gresham operations.