States With A Smaller Wage Gap See More Business Growth
A new report by Business.org has found that states with smaller wage gaps between women and men experience more new business creation. California leads the way in the number of new businesses created each year at a rate of about 125,300. In California, women make an average of 88 cents than men for performing the same work, according to the report. That’s eight cents above the national wage gap. California has the second-highest pay equity rate in the nation.

Big News For San Pedro: Development Plans Unveiled & Possible SpaceX Operation
Yesterday, The Ratkovich Company and Jerico Development unveiled plans for the San Pedro Public Market (SPPM), as part of the Port of Los Angeles’s vision to “re-energize the area,” according to a press release. Plans describe an environmentally friendly and sustainable development, which will include family-friendly shopping, dining, entertainment and a 30-foot-wide waterfront promenade. The announcement comes the day after SpaceX entered into preliminary negotiations with the Port of Los Angeles for the 10-year lease of an 18-acre site to manufacture “large commercial transportation vehicles,” according to the Los Angeles Times. In an e-mail to the Business Journal, a spokesperson of The Ratkovich Company said the SpaceX announcement “underscores the importance of SPPM in the bigger picture for the SoCal region.”

U.S. And European Joint Statement Regarding New Tariffs
The Trump administration announced today that discussions are underway with Australia, Argentina and the European Union regarding excluding them from the tariffs on steel and aluminum. Brazil and South Korea may also be exempt. The United States Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross and European Commission for Trade Cecilia Malmström released the following joint statement:

“We have agreed to launch immediately a process of discussion with President Trump and the Trump Administration on trade issues of common concern, including steel and aluminum, with a view to identifying mutually acceptable outcomes as rapidly as possible.”

New Web Application Helps Homebuyers Identify Earthquake Hazards
The California Geological Survey (CGS) has released a free online tool aimed at homebuyers called the Earthquake Hazards Zone Application. The app analyzes an address or a user’s current location to check if a property lies within a hazard zone. It also indicates if CGS has not yet evaluated the dangers in that area. The application identifies hazards other than ground shaking, including landslides, liquefaction and fault rupture.

New President Of California State University, Dominguez Hills Appointed

The California State University Board of Trustees has appointed Thomas Parham as president of California State University, Dominguez Hills. Parham is currently the vice chancellor of student affairs for the University of California, Irvine, a role he has held since 2011. He is also the author of six books and is a former president of the Association of Black Psychologists. He assumes his new position in June. “There is no greater blessing in life, next to being a parent, than being entrusted with the intellectual and personal growth and development of students,” he said.