Manufacturing nationally enjoyed a robust year as growth in many sectors accelerated from the already strong manufacturing recovery of 2010-11. But the impact varies from state to state, says a report from Ball State University, depending on several factors.

The 2012 Manufacturing and Logistics Report Card, an in-depth analysis from Ball State's Center for Business and Economic Research, grades all 50 states, on how they handled those factors.

Iowa named received the following grades:
Manufacturing: A
Logistics: B
Human Capital: B
Worker Benefit Costs: C
Tax Climate: D-
Expected Liability Gap: B-
Global Reach: C
Sector Diversification: C-
Productivity and Innovation: C


CBER director Michael Hicks says manufacturing roared back in many states in the last year, but he anticipates a slow down as worker productivity gains outstrip demand.

"In the short run, the trend will be exacerbated by the very high probability of a U.S. recession in 2012-13," Hicks says. "The rapidly slowing European, Chinese, Indian and Brazilian economies will place heavy pressure on firms to maintain their exports. A marked decline in U.S. exports is already in progress, and alone will deepen a slowdown already being felt across much of the country. The uncertainty surrounding financial markets will be with us for many months, depressing investment and new hiring. "

CBER prepared the report at the request of Conexus Indiana, the state's advanced manufacturing initiative. It is available at
http://cber.iweb.bsu.edu/research/conexus12/ <http://cber.iweb.bsu.edu/research/conexus11/> .

At the top of the class with A's were Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, Kansas and Iowa. At the bottom, with F's were Alaska, Hawaii, New Mexico and Nevada.

New to the report this year is an analysis of an expected liability gap. State and local governments throughout the U.S. purchase bonds for infrastructure improvement and provide pensions and health care for workers. Typically a dedicated revenue stream pays for these bonds from local or state finances. Pension obligations are typically funded in an actuarially evaluated fund.

Hicks says many states have failed to provide a direct funding stream to bond obligations or to fully fund pension plans, which leads to unfunded bond and pension liabilities. These unfunded liabilities represent an expected state fiscal liability gap, which is a good indicator of the direction of future taxes and public services.

To measure the expected liability gap, the report includes data on unfunded liability per capita and percentage of GDP, average benefits, and bond rankings.

For more information, contact Hicks at mhicks@bsu.edu <mailto:mhicks@bsu.edu>  or 765-716-3625.

Friday, June 15, 2012

Senator Chuck Grassley, Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on the Judiciary, issued the following comment about the President's announcement that the administration will halt deportation and allow the issuance of work permits to those in the country illegally.

"The President's action is an affront to the process of representative government by circumventing Congress and with a directive he may not have the authority to execute.  The President once denied that he had the legal authority to do this, and Congress was assured more than once that the administration would consider individuals for this sort of deferred status on a case-by-case basis only, and that there was no plan to implement a broad-based program.   It seems the President has put election-year politics above responsible policies.  On top of providing amnesty to those under 30 years old, the administration now will be granting work authorizations to illegal immigrants at the same time young Americans face record-high unemployment rates.  Americans also deserve to know how this amnesty program for hundreds of thousands of people will be funded, and whether resources for border security and enforcement will be diverted.  Congress has the authority to write immigration laws, and with this order the President is disregarding the voice of the people through their elected representatives in Congress."

 

Global Distribution Company Chooses Illinois for Expansion; Will Create Approximately 90 Jobs

MASCOUTAH, Ill. - June 14, 2012. Governor Pat Quinn today joined executives from North Bay Produce, Inc. in opening the international company's new refrigerated warehouse at MidAmerica Airport in Mascoutah. As part of Governor Quinn's commitment to boosting Illinois' economy, the company announced it will create 10-15 permanent and 80 seasonal jobs once the facility is fully operational.

According to the Illinois Department of Employment Security, May was the ninth straight month of declining unemployment in Illinois.

"North Bay's decision to locate its global distribution facility at MidAmerica Airport reinforces the Metro East's role as a key transportation hub to the world," Governor Quinn said. "Our goal is to make Illinois the inland port of the nation, and we remain committed to ensuring the Metro East continues to play a vital role in our economic growth."

The company's expansion to MidAmerica Airport is a key step in its plans to open the Asian trade lane that is integral to the company's future growth. The fresh produce marketing and distribution company will serve as the new anchor tenant for the airport's international trade route linking the Americas with Asia. The new $5.7 million, 36,448-square-foot facility can hold 1,317,600 pounds of product, which arrive from all over the world year round.

"With this new state-of-the-art facility, the international reach this site brings to the business model, and the opportunity to be in this great Midwest area, I know we found in MidAmerica Airport the best new home for our expansion," noted Mark Girardin, president of North Bay Produce. "This new location will allow our quality product to maintain the freshest, quickest-to-market character at a great value, and we're excited to get our operations here up and running."

North Bay Produce, Inc. is an international, grower-owned, year-round, fresh produce marketing and distribution cooperative, headquartered in Traverse City, Michigan.  The company's 25 stockholders are located in the United States, Argentina, Chile, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Mexico and Peru. Its multi-year search for an additional central United States location with great logistics ingredients led North Bay to MidAmerica Airport.

Under Governor Quinn's leadership, DCEO has worked diligently to identify and aggressively court companies like North Bay Produce that are looking to expand their global reach. Governor Quinn has long supported MidAmerica's efforts to build a large cargo hub at the airport, with MidAmerica's director accompanying the Governor on his trade mission to China last year. Illinois ranks first in the Midwest for trade and as a destination for foreign investment. The Governor will continue to build on this success by playing a key role in marketing Illinois' world-class attributes abroad and personally meeting with companies to recruit them to Illinois.

For more information on why Illinois is the right place for any business, visit www.illinoisbiz.biz.

 

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'Queen of the Random Job' Going Strong after 13 Years

Most adults of a certain age believe they've had some colorful jobs. Chances are likely, however, that Bethany Mooradian has them beat.

"I began finding random jobs after receiving my degree in puppetry because I realized that most puppeteers don't make that much money," says Mooradian, author of I Got Scammed So You Don't Have To (www.QueenOfTheRandomJob.com), a how-to book for finding legit work in an economy of scammers. "At one point, I was even Ronald McDonald's bodyguard."

Beginning in 1999, in order to make ends meet while pursuing her artistic passions, she looked for odd jobs. It wasn't long before the search for and execution of odd jobs became a lifestyle. She gave so much advice to her friends on how not to be scammed, that she decided to write a book about it.

Mooradian came up with an acronym to help as a general outline to avoid scams: SCRAM. S = scrutinize the source; C = check for affiliate links and fees; R = research the heck out of every detail; A = ask for more information; M = mouse over images and links to see what website you end on before you click.

"I was scammed in a work-at-home gig from a magazine ad when I was young and naïve," she says. "It was before the internet was widely used, so it wasn't as easy to check it out, and I hadn't yet developed my SCRAM method."

While the odd, random job or source of supplemental income usually does not replace the income of a fulltime job, there are several ways of making money people often overlook, or simply don't know about.

Mooradian emphasizes that anyone can find extra ways to earn income from what they already know how to do, "No one ever goes to college to learn how to 'work at home.' It's simply a matter of taking your skill set and translating that into a home-office or flexible work environment instead of a 9-5 job."  Here are five income opportunities most people are not aware of.

• Being a Virtual Assistant: If you have computer and internet skills, you can work as a VA doing general secretarial work, or processing orders for large-name corporations at home. Many companies are seeing the benefit of "homesourcing" instead of "outsourcing" because overhead is reduced, and customers get to speak to local operators who understand the language and culture.

• Merchandising: Have you ever walked up to someone shelving products in a store to ask for help and they reply, "I'm sorry, I don't work here?" Those are merchandisers. They're hired to set up displays, check prices on items, and shelve products like magazines, food items, and greeting cards. Merchandisers have specific locations to service, but with fairly flexible hours.

• Landlord (rent that extra space!): Many people own property because they want their personal freedom. But for those who've fallen on hard financial times, like millions of Americans, finding a good, trustworthy person to rent your extra room, a storage space, garage, or a parking space is a great option.

• Mystery shopper: Mooradian has created a video and book training course on this topic titled "The Mystery Shopper Training Program," which can be found on her website, as well as through Amazon.com and local bookstores. Mystery shoppers are paid to surreptitiously check out the behavior of employees in retail shops, bars, restaurants, apartment buildings, car dealerships, banks, and even on cruise ships and travel resorts.

• Use your talent: You don't have to have movie-star aspirations to get work as an extra in movies, television shows or industrial/training films. Many times you can call up your local film board to find casting directors in the area to get on their "extra" list. Voiceover work can also be done from the comfort of your home if you have a powerful enough microphone, and you can also be a "standardized patient" acting out diseases to help medical students with their board exams.

"The internet is full of information, but finding useful leads for jobs or making extra money can be like searching for a needle in the proverbial haystack, which is why I provide over 300 legitimate companies, ideas, and resources for money-seekers," she says.

About Bethany Mooradian

For 13 years Bethany Mooradian has lived the random-job lifestyle, including everything from being a puppeteer, dog walker and art gallery owner to actor, sexual health resource clinic advisor and parade float fabricator to elderly caregiver, phone book deliverer, mystery shopper, virtual assistant and more. The "Queen of the Random Job" has written books, created training programs, and teaches classes in both Seattle and online to assist others looking for ways to make ends meet.