Strengthening competitiveness in a changing global market
- Issuer
- Congressional materials
- Document type
- 2025 12 05 A33521 D290148 Com Oedc Fostering Washington State S Businesses Resilience
- Date
- 2025-12-05
- Case
- 2025 12 05 A33521 D290148 Com Oedc Fostering Washington State S Businesses Resilience
Summary
A slide presentation by the Washington State Department of Commerce's Office of Economic Development and Competitiveness (OEDC) to the House Committee on Technology, Economic Development, and Veterans Affairs (TEDV), dated December 5, 2025, on fostering business resilience in the face of tariffs. It is presented by Andrea Chartock, Assistant Director. The slides describe the office's units for small business export assistance, small business finance and community support, business development and industry sector development, and an overseas consultant network of 11 strategic partners covering 9 countries/territories. They present a decision package on building tariff resilience, citing federal State Trade Expansion Program (STEP) export vouchers, and close with two business case studies.
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Cite this document
“Strengthening competitiveness in a changing global market.”
Original at app.leg.wa.gov, dated 2025-12-05. Archived at Pandemic Darlings, https://pandemicdarlings.com/source-documents/2025-12-05-2025-12-05-a33521-d290148-com-oedc-fostering-washington-state-s-businesses-resilience/
, SHA-256 311d0baa58e53960f4cb216f204d46bbf543ee7904f750a6d3dee94824e39960.Full text
OEDC Fostering
Washington state’s
businesses resilience
in the face of tariffs
Strengthening competitiveness in a changing global market
A Presentation to the House Committee on Technology,
Economic Development, and Veterans Affairs (TEDV)
Andrea Chartock, Assistant Director
OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND COMPETITIVENESS (OEDC)
DECEMBER 5, 2025
v1.5
We strengthen communities
HOUSING AND INFRASTRUCTURE AND SMALL BUSINESS
HOMELESSNESS BROADBAND ASSISTANCE ENERGY
PLANNING AND TECH CRIME VICTIMS AND ECONOMIC
ASSISTANCE COMMUNITY SERVICES PUBLIC SAFETY DEVELOPMENT
WASHINGTON STATE DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 2
Office of Economic Development and
Competitiveness: Technical areas
• Exports and Market
diversification
• Business attraction and
retention (foreign direct Office of Economic Development and Competitiveness
investment/FDI)
• Finance & technical assistance
to small businesses
• Fostering innovation in key Small Business Industry Sector Small Business
Business Development Development Finance and
industry sectors Export (Recruitment, Community
• A coordinated approach with Assistance expansion and Support
local, regional and federal attraction)
partners
• International engagement
WASHINGTON STATE DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 3
Small Business Export Assistance Unit
How we help diversify foreign markets
• Export strategy
consulting
• Market research
• Business matchmaking
• Trade missions/trade
shows
• Export training
• STEP Export Voucher
Program
• Advocacy
Fruit Attraction international expo, Fall 2025, Madrid
• Risk mitigation
WASHINGTON STATE DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 4
Small Business Finance and Community
Support
We offer financing and funding so
that small businesses can grow
• Four different loan programs
• Start-up investments: AI, machine
learning, and climate
• Increased lending capacity
• Technical Assistance Program
• Small Business Resilience Network
(SBRN)
• Credit-building readiness support Boon Boona Coffee, just one of the many recipients of
SSBCI funding
WASHINGTON STATE DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 5
Business Development Unit
We help keep and increase jobs
through supply chain optimization:
• Foreign direct investment (FDI)
• Business recruitment, retention and
expansion
• Site selection and tax incentive
analysis
• Strategic Reserve Fund grants
• Evergreen Manufacturing Growth
grants
• Clean energy project of statewide
significance Evergreen Manufacturing grant recipient LaFarge &
Egge grand opening December 2024
Now is the time to capture relocating global
investment
WASHINGTON STATE DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 6
Washington’s overseas consultant network
11 strategic partners covering 9 countries/territories
Japan
Canada Europe (State/STEP)
(STEP) (State/STEP) South Korea
(STEP)
Mexico Taiwan (State)
(STEP)
India Southeast
(State/STEP) Asia/Vietnam
(STEP)
South
America/Brazil
(STEP)
WASHINGTON STATE DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 7
Industry Sector Development
Key = open positions
under recruitment
Fueling our innovation economy
Fostering economic growth through business attraction, policy advisement, and industry support to
compete globally, grow locally, and create quality jobs.
Mobility Economy: Energy Economy Circular Bioeconomy
• Maritime • Clean tech • Industrial symbiosis
• Hydrogen • Recycling innovation
• Aerospace
• Nuclear • Forest products
• Military/Defense
• Agricultural tech
Knowledge Economy: Creative Economy
Workforce innovation
• Life sciences • Arts/Media • Keep Washington
• Global health • Design/Digital Working
• Information and Tourism and
communications tech Entrepreneurship
• NW Economic
Development Course
WASHINGTON STATE DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 8
Tariff resilience:
Safeguards jobs in Washington state
• Market expansion Over 95% of world consumers and 75% of the world’s
purchasing power reside outside the U.S.*
• Employment Two of every five jobs are tied to global trade
• Higher wages Exports increase earnings by 18% on average across the U.S.
manufacturing industries*
• Resilience Exporting helps companies ride out economic downturns
• Efficiency Fully use existing production capabilities
• Profits Companies that export tend to be more profitable than those that don’t
*Source: Office of the U.S. Trade Representative
WASHINGTON STATE DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 9
Decision package: Building tariff resilience
Safeguard competitiveness and support business growth
• Help finding alternative markets
• Supply chain optimization
• Industry sector competitiveness
WASHINGTON STATE DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 10
Urgency of the moment
Federal funding for small A generational opportunity is
business exports emerging (FDI)
• International companies seek new
• Our presence at 10+ key U.S. locations amid global supply
international trade shows chain shifts
• International representation • Industry Sector Development
Program (ISDP) leveraging federal
• State Trade Expansion Program funds
(STEP) export vouchers • ISDP drives innovation and growth
• Export and financial assistance in WA’s key industries
training • By aligning industry, workforce
policy and investment, ISDP
ensures WA’s global
competitiveness
WASHINGTON STATE DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 11
Makah Bay Seafoods
For the first time, A tribal business joined
OEDC’s Washington delegation at the
Global Seafood Expo in Barcelona, Spain,
and reflects a collaborative partnership
with the Washington Department of
Agriculture.
“The Seafood Expo in Spain was a turning point for us…”
“With trade support and new market exposure, the company grew from
working with just six boats to over thirty (and more planned for 2026), Ida Colfax-Engram
creating sustainable income for local fishers and building a foundation for Makah Bay Seafoods,
long-term growth in a remote community of less than 2000 people.” Neah Bay, Clallam
county
WASHINGTON STATE DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 12
Portal Space Systems
• 2025 Paris Air Show delegate takes off!
• Developer of advanced satellite propulsion systems,
with ties to Blue Origin and the Washington space
industry ecosystem
• Announced expansion by 6x, from 8k to 50K sq. ft
and anticipates adding more than 75 jobs by 2027
“After the Paris Air Show, we achieved lift-off…”
“Along with the expansion announcement, Portal Systems signed supplier
agreements with a Swedish company, have follow up with NATO’s Space
Center of Excellence, Centre National d'Etudes Spaciales (CNES) and The
German Aerospace Research Center (DLR) as well as a handful of others. Jeff Thornburg, CEO
It was an invaluable experience for our company.” and Co-Founder, Portal
Space Systems
WASHINGTON STATE DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 13
Thank you!
Andrea Chartock The Commerce website
www.commerce.wa.gov
Click this logo to go to the Commerce website Facebook logo Linkedin logo Intagram logo
www.commerce.wa.gov
Click this logo to go to the Commerce Click this logo to go to the Commerce Click this logo to go to the Commerce
Facebook page Linkedin page Instagram page
ASSISTANT DIRECTOR
OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND COMPETITIVENESS
Andrea.Chartock@commerce.wa.gov
Dave Pringle
LEGISLATIVE DIRECTOR
Dave.Pringle@commerce.wa.gov
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- Original
- app.leg.wa.gov