Read this, or else

 

 

The headline above does not intend to convey calamity or death; it could, if action is not taken to get the economy of Fairfield County back on track.

 

The headline instead is aimed at the legislators who just returned to Hartford to begin drawing up budgets for the next two fiscal years.

 

They have done little to instill confidence in the business community over the past few sessions. That lack of commitment is now being expressed by executives and CFOs in

CBIA”™s 2009 Fairfield County Business Survey.

 

The pessimism is overwhelming. It”™s one thing to talk about the economy; it”™s another to see the depressing numbers etched like acid in stone: 75 percent of those surveyed describe the local economy as poor or fair and 78 percent feel the economy will worsen somewhat over the next year; 24 percent recorded a net loss last year.

 

Positive legislative intervention is needed.

 

Edward J. Musante Jr., president and CEO of the Greater Norwalk Chamber of Commerce, summed it up best.

 

“I hope that our legislators in Hartford read the results of this survey very carefully. It reveals the dangerous combination of rising costs and difficulty in finding highly skilled workers in an otherwise desirable region with a high quality of life. To bolster and sustain a vibrant economy in Fairfield County, businesses need to be nurtured without threat of additional, costly governmental mandates.”

 

We think there is unanimous agreement among businesses on that point.

 

Peter Gioia, vice president and economist of CBIA, added to Musante”™s statement.

 

“Easing state imposed financial and regulatory burdens on business will be crucial to bringing our economy back online.”

 

With the way state government has been acting toward business ”“ only 14 percent of those surveyed felt their tax dollars are used effectively ”“ businesses also need to address the issues outlined in the study and find solutions themselves lest they end up closing their doors.

 

Among the depressing numbers served up in the survey, there is a nugget of hope: A majority intends to expand their businesses in the next five years. But that tiny bit of hope needs to be nurtured by positive action in Hartford.

Dear governor and legislators, please read the report ”¦ or “or else” just might happen.