PORT TOWNSEND — Buying locally produced goods enhances the regional economy, but its effect in Jefferson County is limited, according to information given to the Jefferson County Chamber of Commerce on Monday.
Even with increased efforts toward sustainability, 69 cents of every dollar spent by Jefferson County goes outside of the county, according to Elizabeth Scott, a regional economist for the state Department of Employment Security.
Scott, who keynoted Monday’s weekly membership luncheon of the chamber at the Port Townsend Elks Lodge, reviews economic trends for Jefferson, Clallam and Kitsap counties from an office based in Bremerton.
“There will never be a car manufacturing plant in Jefferson County and there aren’t any car dealerships any more,” Scott said.
“People will never buy all their goods locally because they won’t ever give up their standard of living and sacrifice the things that aren’t available.”
Scott said this is a universal truth; that the global economy prevents any region from being self-sustaining.
“If everyone resolved to eat only locally grown food, they would starve,” she said.
“If we were trying to buy food grown within a 100-mile radius, there wouldn’t be enough to feed us.”
The reverse is also true: In a grain producing state like Kansas, there aren’t enough people to consume everything that is grown, she said.
Even if all goods aren’t available locally, making an effort to buy local food whenever possible can help those who produce food and help the local economy in a small way.
“Locally grown food and beef certainly tastes better,” she said.
Even if Jefferson County residents will always need to go outside the area to buy certain items, an awareness campaign could increase the 31 cents per dollar that people spend locally.
A nationwide survey by the Institute for Self Reliance reported that 64 percent of those asked felt there was an increased awareness of supporting local business over the past year.
It also reported that half of all business owners say they have plans for a “buy local” campaign, and that 55 percent of businesses feel that local campaigns can help small firms compete in challenging economic times.
Other tactics such as social networking and establishing loyalty programs for repeat customers can be used to increase the percentage of locally spent money, Scott said.
Scott said the recession was officially over in 2009 but people in Jefferson County may not have noticed, as both jobs and consumer consumption is still flat.
Scott characterized Jefferson County’s 9.8 percent unemployment rate as “still really high,” although it sits between Clallam County with 10.2 percent and Kitsap County’s 8.1 percent.
San Juan County’s 6.4 percent unemployment rate is the lowest in the state, while Ferry County in Eastern Washington is the highest with 13.1 percent.
Another indicator of how the economy extends beyond the county line is that 35 percent of wages collected by Jefferson County residents is for jobs outside the county, and 10 percent of wages paid within the county is to people who live outside the county.
This doesn’t take home-based businesses into account nor does it reflect money collected for retirement or Social Security, she said.
Scott said that businesses collecting increased revenues are investing in technology to make current employees more productive rather than hiring new employees, which is one reason that some economic growth does not change the unemployment rate.
This is bound to change,” she said.
“Employees are now as productive as they can be, and sooner or later employers will need to hire more people to fill these positions.”
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Jefferson County Reporter Charlie Bermant can be reached at 360-385-2335 or charlie.bermant@peninsuladailynews.com.
