Keep legislators focused on economy

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By John R. Rathgeber

CBIA President and CEO

As the General Assembly got under way in early February, Gov. Rell and the Democratic and Republican caucuses all said economic growth and job creation were their top priorities this year. We were very pleased to hear that, especially since they focused on the issues we have targeted as essential to making Connecticut more competitive: business costs, including taxes and health care costs; transportation; and workforce initiatives.

But the hard work of actually passing bills that will strengthen our economy — and rejecting ones that will damage it — still lies ahead of them. In the coming weeks, legislators will be hearing from many special interest groups advocating anti-business, anti-jobs measures.

I urge you: Be sure legislators hear from you, and from your employees. We need to encourage legislators to stay focused on creating a climate in Connecticut that encourages businesses to invest and create more jobs here. Doing that will mean more opportunities for everyone.

With the governor and General Assembly starting out in the right direction, there’s a real opportunity to make progress this year on improving Connecticut’s business climate and helping our businesses be more competitive in the global economy. Now is the time for you and your employees to get involved.

This year’s legislative session is shorter than usual, 12 weeks, ending May 3.

So, things at the legislature will progress rapidly. We will be keeping you informed about developments via our Web site, publications, meetings and e-mail messages. Please pass the information on to your employees so they will understand the challenges facing our economy and become effective advocates for a pro-growth agenda for Connecticut.