From Your Senator: Jobs Matter

The Montana Taxpayer’s Association has been around since Joseph Dixon was Governor. In 1921, Montana’s total revenue was around $3 million, but the state went a million in the red. “Montax” was formed, and has worked ever since as a nonpartisan resource for tax and government spending information.

Rep. Dan Salomon and I attended the 90th annual meeting of the Montana Taxpayers’ Association in Helena last week. Of all the issues that were presented, I’ll limit this comment to one that’s on most boomers’ minds – Is Social Security sustainable? According to Montax, fiscal failure can be avoided. Current unemployment has worsened its actuarial soundness, but with new workers paying into the system and minor adjustments to age/benefit formulas, Social Security’s pool won’t run dry.

Can we as consumers do anything about it? Individually, it may seem we have little impact but consider this: Bozeman builder Anders Lewendal calculated that 220,000 jobs could be created right now if all builders increased their use of USA-made materials by five percent. He published a list of of domestic-made materials available at comparable costs to imported products. Everything from nails to the kitchen sink, new homes can be 100 percent “Made in America.” The Bozeman Chronicle published his story and ABC News picked it up.

Supporting this concept on a local level, the Lake County Community Development Corp. recently held a five-county agriculture forum in Arlee, emphasizing the positive economic impact of local food products and farm services.

“If consumers purchased only 15 percent of their food directly from the region’s farmers, this would generate $66 million of new farm income,” Karl Sutton of LCCDC said.

All around us, awareness to buy local, regional and domestic products is gaining momentum. I enjoyed the annual open house at Mission Mountain Winery after Thanksgiving, and saw the impressive lineup of awards and ribbons their wines have won. Soon, we’ll have the option of Flathead Lake cheese, made right in Polson. Many other local, regional and U.S.-made products stand up to competition from overseas.

Please consider the origin of everything you buy. The social security paid in by those U.S. workers you’ve employed may someday be your own.