Just two days after his inauguration as Connecticut”™s new governor, the state”™s new CEO told nearly 600 business leaders in Hartford that in solving the state”™s economic and fiscal problems, “There is no cavalry ”¦ except us.”
Consistently during his inauguration week, and at the Economic Summit & Outlook in Hartford on that first Friday, Gov. Dannel Malloy emphasized the importance of growing Connecticut”™s economy and in enlisting the help of employers to accomplish that.
He spoke at length about reigniting Connecticut”™s can-do, entrepreneurial spirit, removing barriers to job creation and economic development, and implementing an economic development strategy that makes sense for the 21st century economy.
“As of today,” he said at the economic summit, “the governor”™s office is open for business and Connecticut is open for business.”
CBIA believes Malloy laid out a vision for the state, and the legislative session, that sets the right priorities. By focusing on economic growth, creating a more employer-friendly climate and reforming state government to make it more efficient and affordable, Connecticut will be able to attack its fiscal crisis and create an environment more conducive to investment and job creation.
Coloring everything, of course, is that the state is facing a crisis situation of a budget deficit of $3.5 billion to $3.7 billion and little or no additional help from other sources, such as federal funds or the state”™s depleted Rainy Day Fund. Malloy acknowledged that policymakers will not be able to “cut our way out of this deficit ”¦ and we cannot tax our way out of (it) either.”
That”™s exactly why growing the economy and reigniting job creation has to be a big part of the solution.
And that”™s why, as he told the business leaders, Connecticut must improve the relationship between state government and the employer community. “Today,” he said, “we have to begin a new relationship.”
It”™s a message that resonates with employers, and the governor backed it up by specifically asking them to let his administration know what regulatory policies are hampering their efforts to grow the economy. He also added that there are some issues, presumably ones that businesses have identified as harmful to job creation and business investment, but that are politically popular, that “may have to be put aside for a few years.”
Instead, he told the executives that his focus will be on making Connecticut more business friendly, restoring fiscal responsibility and reinvesting in Connecticut”™s infrastructures, from education to transportation. He especially wants to make Connecticut”™s colleges and universities “more agile” so that they can take a larger role in economic development.
Those are also the priorities of the business community. And they can form the common ground of the “new relationship” the governor is seeking.
When she introduced Malloy at the economic conference, Ramona Carlow, vice president of public policy and strategy for AT&T, and chairwoman of CBIA”™s Board of Directors, said “as business leaders and employers, we look forward to working with Governor Malloy to make Connecticut a leader once again in economic growth, job creation and opportunity for all the people of the state.”
In fact, those are the sentiments of business leaders ”“ as well as the hope for Connecticut”™s full and healthy economic recovery.
John R. Rathgeber is president and CEO of the Connecticut Business & Industry Association. He can be reached at John.Rathgeber@cbia.com.
