There’s been lots of talk about how the state needs to improve its retention of young professionals, particularly college graduates with science, technology, engineering, and math backgrounds.
Some state lawmakers think they may have a partial solution.
The legislature’s Commerce Committee recently held a public hearing on a bill that creates new incentives for students who graduate from Connecticut colleges or technical schools and then establish a new business in the state.
The proposal would allow Connecticut college graduates, who finish school after Jan. 1 2015, to put a portion of their state income tax payments into a special account that can be tapped into up to 10 years after graduation to finance a new business venture, or a new home purchase.
In-state students would be able to deposit up to $2,500 annually into a “Learn Here, Live Here” account, which would be tracked by the state Department of Revenue Services.
The Learn Here, Live Here program was actually created by state lawmakers in 2011, but was never implemented. Originally, it was intended to help recent college grads finance a new home purchase. Now lawmakers, led by bill co-sponsors Sen. Art Linares (R-Westbrook) and Reps. Melissa H. Ziobron (R-East Haddam), Tony Hwang (R-Fairfield), and Christopher Davis (R-Ellington), want to revive the program and extend it to entrepreneurs looking to start a business.
The Department of Economic and Community Development, however, is raising a red flag about the proposal, arguing in testimony to the Commerce Committee it amounts to an unfunded mandate. DECD said it doesn’t have the funding or personnel to implement the program.
Linares said the program would be capped at $1 million per year.
There are also safeguards to protect taxpayers: If program participants move out of Connecticut within five years of graduating they must repay all or a portion of the funds, Linares said.
