Inside
This Issue
Calendar of Events.............3
Certified & Licensed
Professionals.......................2
Classifieds............................3
Entertainment......................2
Food.......................................5
Hawthorne Happenings....3
Lawndale..............................4
Legals................................ 4-7
Pets........................................8
Weekend
Forecast
Rep. Waters Attends Behavioral
Health Services Community Fair
Congresswoman Maxine Waters and BHS Chief Executive Officer, Shirley Summers, at the 2018 Behavioral Health Services Community Fair on Saturday, Sept. 29. The event brought together hundreds of
families from the 43rd Congressional District cities, including Inglewood. Photo courtesy of Behavioral Health Services.
Governor Brown: Flight
Commission Push Is a No Go
By Rod McCarthy
aerospace companies with tax incentives and
Gov. Jerry Brown has vetoed an effort to
government subsidies. California needs to do
create a commission that could keep aerospace
more to compete,” the local lawmaker said.
and aviation jobs from leaving the state despite
The South Bay assemblyman reportedly
strong support of lawmakers in Sacramento.
spent a year building support among lawmakers
The governor said in his veto message on
before introducing his bill. Its purpose is to
Sept. 23 that he agreed with lawmakers that
advise policymakers about what the aviation
the flight industry is a major contributor to
and space industries need from state-elected
the state’s economy. However, Brown believes
officials. The 17-member commission would
a commission to advise lawmakers on what
be a central point of contact in Sacramento
airlines and aerospace companies need to stay
for one of California’s dominant industries,
competitive is unwarranted. “This bill would
according to the bill.
create a new bureaucracy that replicates many of
Companies here provide the majority of the
the things the state is already doing,” he wrote
nation’s aerospace engineering services and
in his veto message. “I think the goals of this
the navigation and guidance systems used by
bill can be easily handled under current law.”
aircraft, according to the bill’s authors. The
Lawmakers overwhelmingly supported
workforce for aerospace companies is estimated
the effort by Assemblyman Al Muratsuchi,
at 230,000, with another 500,000 jobs in support
D-Torrance, to start a 15-member panel
of air and space projects.
to make a case in Sacramento for tax and
Lately, challengers to the state’s dominance
regulatory policies that make it possible for air
have stepped forward to entice air and space
and space companies to remain in California.
companies to move their operations beyond
The Assembly and State Senate approved the
California’s borders, according to the bill’s
commission bill in August without a single
authors. “California’s position as a global leader,
no vote from their members. Sen. Ben Allen,
however, is being increasingly challenged,”
D-Redondo Beach, who represents parts of
said the blueprint for a California Aerospace
the South Bay, was a principal co-author of
and Aviation Commission. The panel would
the measure on behalf of the aerospace and
consist of 17 members handpicked from the
defense employers in the region.
industry and also represent higher education,
Brown in the past has blocked bills that
labor and finance.
create more bureaucracy in the state capital.
“Primary industry challenges have been
His veto message indicated that the governor’s
identified to include competition from abroad
office already is tasked with working closely
in aerospace manufacturing, a declining instate
with the $100 billion flight industry here. With
customer base with government contracts,
Brown leaving office next year, it’s possible
and state tax credits that need modification to
the state’s next chief executive will agree with
match incentives in other states,” the bill said.
local lawmakers that the flight industry deserves
The proposed law also warns of another
a seat at the table.
job-killer on the horizon. The state must
Muratsuchi, who is chairman of the aerospace
prepare in case of military base closures by the
committee in the Assembly, told the Herald he
Department of Defense and shifts in funding
will continue to champion the need for such a
priorities by NASA.
public-private partnership with the next governor.
Florida has enticed at least one California
“States across the country are aggressively luring
aerospace company to relocate, and industry
leaders say that Space Florida has the money
and clout with lawmakers that is lacking
here. Judy Kruger, who oversees aerospace
sector activities at the Los Angeles Economic
Development Corporation (LAEDC), said earlier
this year that her agency was in full support of
Muratusuchi and Bloom’s defensive posture on
behalf of the air and space employers.
Texas, Georgia and Michigan are moving
forward to create commissions, which the
LAEDC says are completely dedicated to
growing their states’ aerospace industries.
The work envisioned for the California body
will be to market the state’s tax and business
climate at industry events, where other states
will have a presence.
The Legislature lately has shown a
willingness to help flight and rocket engine
makers to be competitive in bidding for federal
contracts. Lawmakers in 2014 supported an
enhanced tax credit and tax exemption for
Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman,
both of which were competing for federal
Department of Defense contracts. A wave
of innovation is happening across the South
Bay, including a three-year-old startup in
Westchester called Relativity Space.
Relativity says it’s a first-of-its-kind rocket
factory and launch service that makes rockets
using 3D printers. The orbital launch company
expects to “deploy and resupply satellite
constellations to connect and improve our
planet.” That includes a mission to Mars
someday.
Another newcomer based in Westchester
is TenTech, which designs engineering and
software to build safer air and space vehicles.
The company started in 2011 with a goal
of helping manufacturers lower production
costs. TenTech says it provides expertise in
aerospace, defense, avionics packaging and
airborne electronics.
See Flight Commission, page 8
Friday
Partly
Cloudy
70˚/63˚
Saturday
Partly
Cloudy
69˚/62˚
Sunday
Sunny
69˚/61˚
The Weekly Newspaper of Inglewood
Daily News on a Weekly Basis - Herald Publications - Inglewood, Hawthorne, Lawndale & El Segundo Community Newspapers Since 1911 - Circulation 30,000 - Readership 60,000 (310) 322-1830 - October 4, 2018