Monday, January 21, 2013

Doing Business in Connecticut

According to recent economic reports, Connecticut is the fifth most expensive place to do business.  It also seems to have costs that are rising more quickly than the same costs in other parts of the country, where the official CPI is 1.7 % for 2012.  Since my earlier blog reported that Connecticut also is lagging jobs recovered and in coming out of the recession in general, where's the good news?

The good news is that the state knows all of this and is determined to improve our statistics.  The Governor has been aggressive in trying to--and sometimes succeeding in--luring new companies to Connecticut.  The most recent one was from Europe.  He has also made a specialty out of alternative energy, and that is a booming industry.  Catherine Smith, the DECD Commissioner, has gone all over the state, speaking and listening on the topic of doing business here.

Some problems won't change.  It is always going to be more expensive to heat buildings in a northern climate, and old infrastructure is less efficient than that found in regions built up more recently.  However, it shouldn't take more to get a permit here than elsewhere, nor should the regulations imposed on business be more onerous.  It's hard enough to compete against the rest of the world, without coming in behind the rest of the country on certain metrics.  Our Governor seems to understand this, and let's hope that he can address the issues, and create a climate of innovation and renewal for all business.

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