For the 2017 legislative session, promoting Connecticut’s economic growth is as much about not enacting unfunded mandates or regulations that burden employers as it is about taking action to foster a more competitive economy, according to the Connecticut Business & Industry Association.
The CBIA released its 2017 legislative agenda Wednesday, offering policy proposals focused on eight key areas, with sustainable state spending and tax policy heading the list. The others include: education and workforce development, energy, environment, health care, labor and employment, regulatory reform and transportation.
For the most part, there are no groundbreaking policy ideas in CBIA’s agenda. Most concepts are things the business lobby has advocated for in the past, like urging lawmakers to restore fiscal stability and bolster business confidence by reforming state government, reducing the cost of services, stabilizing long-term state finances, and adopting tax policies that encourage private-sector investment.
Despite its advantages, Connecticut is not reaching its economic potential, so the legislators elected Nov. 8 and taking office in January “must act with a sense of urgency to give employers the confidence to invest here and grow Connecticut jobs,” said CBIA president and CEO Joe Brennan.
CBIA’s agenda says promoting economic growth and fiscal stability “means not proposing bills that add more labor or other workplace mandates that would increase the high costs and heavy regulatory burdens our businesses already face.”
Brennan added that state investments in aerospace, bioscience, and other key industries have begun to pay off, but Connecticut’s ongoing fiscal problems have had a chilling effect on overall investment and growth in the state.
“Job number one for the legislature must be continuing the progress made in 2016 in closing budget gaps without resorting to harmful tax increases that drive those investments elsewhere,” he said.
The 2017 legislative agenda is available on CBIA’s website.
