‘Buy local’ means ‘buy regional’

By The Gazette Editorial Board

The Cedar Rapids City Council is considering expansion of the city's buy-local policy to include businesses from all of Linn County. We urge the Council to OK the idea and also encourage, but not require as part of any policy change, other metro and county communities to reciprocate.

In January, the Council approved a measure giving Cedar Rapids businesses preference on some city purchases of services and goods. The major goal was to help local businesses struggling to recover from the 2008 flood. A Cedar Rapids business can bid up to 10 percent more than outside companies for contracts of $25,000 or under; up to 5 percent on contracts between $25,000 and $199,999; and 1 percent more on contracts of $200,000 or more.

Construction contracts requiring sealed bids or deals using state and federal money are exempt.

While the program's intent was good, it has sometimes excluded nearby businesses that were heavily involved in post-flood activity here or had long histories of working in Cedar Rapids. The policy drew protests from the Cedar Rapids Area Chamber of Commerce as well as businesses in Hiawatha, Marion and elsewhere.

That's understandable. Our business environment is regional - it extends to the county lines and arguably beyond, especially Johnson County. The Corridor Business Alliance's stated goal is to instill a more collaborative approach to economic development that promotes and benefits our region as a whole.

Research shows buy-local programs do stir the local economy, as long as communities don't pay much more than they would to outside firms.

Cedar Rapids, the region's largest city, should take the lead and affirm that buy-local affects a region, not just one community. Expanding to Linn County would be a good step. Including Johnson County would more fully embrace the regional

strategy.