ICYMI: Transportation Secretary Visits Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach to See Supply Chain Improvements, Meet with Local Leaders

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg visited the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach Tuesday, highlighting improvements that have come under the Biden-Harris Administration's Supply Chain Task Force.

Early in the day, Secretary Buttigieg met with labor leaders and state officials to discuss the Emerging Projects Agreement between DOT and California, which supports innovative integrated projects to facilitate the movement of imports and exports in the state.

After the meeting, Secretary Buttigieg took a boat tour from the Port of Los Angeles to the Port of Long Beach, where representatives from the ports updated him on port operations and highlighted how recent DOT investments helped improve the movement of goods.

On arriving at the Port of Long Beach, Secretary Buttigieg held a press conference highlighting a recent $52 million grant to the Port of Long Beach, progress of the Supply Chain Task Force, and how Bipartisan Infrastructure Law investments will help modernize the movement of goods in California in the future years.

WHAT THEY'RE SAYING

Spectrum News1 - Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg praises port workers

"Everything goes better when states and local leaders and the federal government are working together," Buttigieg said during a marquee event attended by the mayors of LA and Long Beach, the executive directors of both cities' ports, two LA County Supervisors, three U.S. Congress members and various state officials.

"We're very proud of what was achieved here," Buttigieg said, noting that the ports handled a record-breaking amount of cargo last year despite supply chain disruptions. Shipments were up 14% in 2021 compared with the previous record set in 2018.

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Buttigieg also acknowledged more work was needed to resolve the supply-chain problem. In an interview with The Times, he said the ports needed more funding to modernize their facilities and adjacent rail lines and roads to ease bottlenecks during the next cargo surge.

"We've got to be ready for the unexpected," he said.

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The secretary ... highlighted several funding opportunities aimed at improving the resilience of the nation's supply chain, including a partnership with the state to fast track $5 billion in financing for port-related infrastructure projects, $17 billion in funding for ports as part of the Biden administration's historic infrastructure bill and the more than $52 million in federal funding recently announced for the Port of Long Beach's Pier B On-Dock Support Facility.

Daily Breeze - US transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg gets first-hand look at ports of LA, Long Beach

Buttigieg and his staff, along with other Biden administration officials, have been involved in efforts to work through and solve the problems. Port staff and federal officials, Port of L.A. spokesman Phillip Sanfield said, have met regularly via Zoom meetings conducted three times a week.

The Hill - Buttigieg touts supply achievements at ports of Los Angeles, Long Beach

"Not only is this about the presents under the tree, this is about essential goods like medical goods that are needed in this moment of continued public health challenge," he said.

He highlighted the recent $52 million grant for the Port of Long Beach and mentioned that $17 billion more has been committed to ports from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, which Biden signed into law in November.

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Buttigieg also praised essential workers for their continued efforts on the job throughout the pandemic, including the latest Omicron variant outbreak. He said it families were able to receive the gifts they wanted because of their hard work.

"Supply chains are human. Supply chains are people who use equipment in order to get goods to where they need to be," he said. "One of the reasons that Christmas was in fact not cancelled was because ports like Los Angeles and Long Beach moved record levels of goods, allowing an all-time record high in terms of sales this holiday season."

BROADCAST

KTLA- Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg visits L.A., Long Beach ports

ABC7 Los Angeles - Buttigieg tours Los Angeles and Long Beach ports to assess progress to supply chain

Fox 11- Secretary Pete Buttigieg visits Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach

NewsNation - Buttigieg visits Southern California ports