A New Community 3 Miles Off California's Coast

A new company, SeaCode, proposes to solve the problems with outsourcing engineering work overseas by providing the same resources just three miles from California's coast.

"The ship's location just outside the three-mile limit will exempt it from California labor and environmental regulations, but not international maritime labor rules or federal regulations forbidding the dumping of fuel, trash and sewage. Because the ship will be registered under the Bahamian flag or another foreign registry, the workers won't need H-1B visas, unlike foreign employees housed temporarily on U.S. territory. SeaCode's U.S. clients might consider that a plus because H-1Bs have become extremely scarce since 2003, when the government slashed the annual quota by more than half, to 85,000."

Thanks to Chris Steins