[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 81 (Wednesday, June 9, 1999)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1201-E1202]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                            HIGH TECHNOLOGY

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. GRACE F. NAPOLITANO

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, June 9, 1999

  Mrs. NAPOLITANO. Mr. Speaker, as a Californian, I am fully aware of 
the impact of the high technology industry has had on my state's 
economic well-being and the prosperity of our people. California is, 
after all, the proud home of high-technology--the industry responsible 
for revitalizing the California economy, ensuring our position as the 
premier exporting state in the nation, and creating tens of thousands 
of high-wage jobs for our burgeoning population.
  High-tech jobs are well-paying jobs--approximately 73 percent higher 
than other private sector jobs. This means that, on average, high-tech 
pays a $49,500 annual salary while other jobs pay $28,500. The most 
recent data on California's high-tech industry indicate that California 
ranks first in high-tech employment (about 785,000 jobs) and second in 
high-tech wages. Moreover, by 1997, 61 percent of all California 
exports were high-tech products.
  In the context of a competitive global economy, America's high-tech 
products are in growing demand. As a result, America has a huge high-
tech goods trade surplus with the European Union, Canada, and Brazil. 
In 1996, the high-tech industry exported $150 billion in goods making 
it the nation's leading exporter ahead of transportation equipment and 
chemicals. In this decade our high-tech exports grew a phenomenal 96 
percent.
  Our high-tech companies' innovations and business acumen are truly 
the envy of the world. The New Democrat Coalition's High-Tech Week is a 
perfect opportunity to put into perspective both our triumphs and our 
challenges. There is no doubt that the twin engines of technology and 
trade propel this economy.
  The U.S. computer industry serves as a good example of American 
innovation and leadership. Many of our most successful companies 
started out as small entrepreneurial ventures with little cash, lots of 
enthusiasm, vision, hard work and real commitment. Those are the 
qualities that make me proud to be an American and a Californian.
  However, today we are at a crossroads. We approach a new millennium 
with a workforce that lacks the skills to take advantage of the 
boundless opportunities that the high-tech industry has to offer. The 
concerns I hear from both educators and high-tech business people about 
the lack of skilled workers are serious. This is an ominous situation 
that deserves our serious attention.
  The American Electronics Association is absolutely correct when it 
states ``the technology industry cannot be sustained without workers 
with solid training in science and math.''
  It is a national embarrassment that American students do not compete 
well with high school students from other countries. For example, U.S. 
high school seniors ranked 19th in math and 16th in science in 
standardized tests among 21 countries.
  When it comes to cultivating qualified workers for high-tech jobs, 
California, like many other high-tech oriented states, lags behind many 
of our foreign competitors. Although there has been some progress, 
California and other states continue to struggle with creating a solid 
and educated high-tech workforce. The key is developing core 
competencies in technical areas such as math, science, and the use of 
technology.
  Without fundamental change, I am concerned about the continued 
vitality of our high-tech industry and its ability to attract an 
educated high-tech workforce. In California and throughout the U.S., 
the high-tech industry continues to experience a shortage of qualified 
workers. How long can we rely on other countries to fill our job 
vacancies without harming our own competitiveness? Right now, foreign 
nationals receive nearly half of all doctoral degrees and a third of 
all masters degrees awarded by U.S. universities.
  I believe that we--educators, business people and political leaders--
must come up with a new educational agenda and the will to implement 
it. Our educational system, from kindergarten to the college level must 
encourage Americans to study math and sciences so that they can have 
access to the abundance of high-paying job opportunities in the high-
tech industry.
  It is alarming that despite all the opportunities available to people 
with degrees in math, engineering and physics, colleges are graduating 
fewer and fewer American students with these majors. In fact, high-tech 
degrees from American institutions have actually decreased 5 percent 
from 1990-1996. Although California colleges and universities conferred 
the most high-tech degrees, they also had had one of the steepest 
declines, awarding 1,600 fewer degrees in 1996 than in 1990.
  Our economic security demands that we find solutions to this crisis. 
A world class, K-12 public school educational system is not beyond our 
grasp. What has eluded us is national commitment. We tend to talk about 
educational excellence but have been unwilling to provide the funds 
that are critical to this objective. And we have failed to rally 
parents and business as true partners in what must be a coordinated and 
creative national effort. The 106th Congress has an obligation and an 
opportunity to make ``educational excellence'' one of its highest 
priorities. This means we need to assure that we have qualified 
teachers in our classrooms, that students meet basic competencies and 
that attention is given to the evolving needs of the high-tech 
industry.
  Our children and our grandchildren will be the true beneficiaries of 
this legacy if we are bold enough to meet the challenge.

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