Sonoma County's Stagnant Economy

"Most regions of the country would celebrate the news that the unemployment rate had fallen to 3.7 percent. But there won't be any celebrating in Sonoma County where the jobless rate fell in December because, year over year, 1,300 jobs went away."

The next generation cannot live on successes of the past. Sonoma County remains an expensive place for housing. Responding to the high cost of doing business in California, more employers are sending jobs to other states and to other countries.

"This exodus of jobs and workers over the last eight months testifies to a stagnant economy - which means fewer dollars cycling through the local economy and fewer dollars to support municipal services and nonprofit agencies. In that way, fewer jobs leads to ... fewer jobs. Economists cite the usual suspects."