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Blanco plans trip to Cuba
to find buyers for La. Goods
Task force created to
aid job training
By Ed Anderson, capital
bureau. Times
Picayune, LA, January 13, 2005.
BATON ROUGE -- Gov. Kathleen Blanco launched
her second year in office Wednesday by announcing
that she will make a trip to Cuba to look
for new markets for state-produced goods.
She said she also will create a task force
to look at ways to improve matching job-seekers
with employers.
Surrounded by members of her Cabinet and
legislative leaders at a Capitol news conference,
Blanco said that she will "continue
to travel the nation and the world"
seeking economic development projects and
jobs for Louisiana citizens. She pointed
to accomplishments in her first year in
office, such as landing a railcar manufacturer
for Alexandria after it seemed headed to
Texas and coaxing General Motors to expand
its manufacturing plant in Shreveport.
"I think we are going to have big
dividends as we move through the next years,"
Blanco said. "Louisiana is open for
business We are focused, and we are going
after more business."
The governor said she will make a trip
to Cuba with Department of Economic Development
officials and others to "find markets
for Louisiana products. We want to open
Louisiana to more international business."
Aides to Blanco said the trip is being
planned for "several days" at
the end of February or early March.
"The details of the trip are still
being planned," spokesman Roderick
Hawkins said.
Blanco press secretary Denise Bottcher
said the Cuba trip may be expanded to include
a trip to Mexico, but that has not yet been
decided.
As her first official act in her second
year in office, Blanco established a 23-member
Task Force on Workforce Competitiveness
to help business find ways to more quickly
train workers for new jobs. The executive
order requires the group to meet no later
than Jan. 21 and come up with possible legislation
for consideration by April 15, in time for
introduction in the legislative session
that starts April 25.
Blanco said the task force, one of several
she has created since becoming governor,
"will coordinate our resources"
so business will have a "one-stop shop"
in finding money and programs to train workers.
The panel will be chaired by state Department
of Labor Secretary John Warner Smith. Its
members will include Blanco, members of
her Cabinet, representatives of large and
small business groups and labor, officials
from the petrochemical, hospitality, contractors
and hospital industries, government watchdog
groups, lawmakers, local officials and chamber
of commerce groups.
"Too many are still sitting outside
the education system," Blanco said.
"They end up on the streets. They end
up peddling drugs. They end up in jail.
. . . This will be designed to address how
to bring them into the work force. . . .
We have a fractured system the way it is
designed. There has never been a global
view of the whole network."
During the past year, Blanco has named
task forces to look into health-care issues,
how to bring more computers and the Internet
to rural areas, poverty, adult literacy
and high school redesign.
On other issues, Blanco said she:
-- Will focus "this year and the next
year of my administration on improving education
and improving the health-care delivery system."
She did not elaborate on what her initiatives
will be.
-- Expects Saints owner Tom Benson to negotiate
in good faith with her aides to restructure
an agreement to keep the National Football
League team in New Orleans. "We will
have some very fruitful discussions,"
she said. "I think we will come out
ahead" by saving taxpayers money with
a new deal.
-- Will announce her legislative agenda
for the April 25 session in the next few
weeks.
Ed Anderson can be reached at eanderson@timespicayune.com
or (225) 342-5810.
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NOLA.com. All Rights Reserved.
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