This precludes San Jose from forming a Sister City linkage with them because the City s Sister City policy, which is consistent with that of Sister Cities International, does not allow the City to form a Sister City relationship with cities that have a relationship with a U.S. city. The policy rationale is to discourage cities from having too many relationships that dilute their resources. The International Economic Partnership program offers an alternative program for advancing San Jose s economic and trade relations with government and businesses in other regions of the world, through targeted trade, investment, and promotion programs designed to mutually benefit San Jose and the partner city. Primarily because of San Jose s identification as the Capital of Silicon Valley, the City receives many requests from foreign cities to establish formal economic partnerships. Staff recommends that Council adopt the following guidelines for determining Economic Partnerships.
Partnership cities work to achieve both short and long-term objectives.
Based on the criteria above, OED should complete an evaluation of a potential Economic Partnership and make a recommendation to Council. The City Council will make the final decision as to whether San Jose should have an Economic Partnership with a particular city. Cities approved for Partnership would then adopt resolutions that specify activities and program responsibilities for both cities. Implementation of the Partnership City program would be the responsibility of the Office of Economic Development. As substantial staff time and program resources are needed to ensure that economic partnerships are successful, the City should approve only those that have the greatest benefit to San Jose and review them periodically for results.