Joseph J. Crisco, Jr.

Crisco Votes to Pass Two Bills Designed to Generate Jobs, Stimulate Economic Growth Statewide

State Senator Joseph J. Crisco, Jr. (D-Woodbridge), Senate chair of the legislature’s Insurance and Real Estate Committee, today helped win approval for two bills written to help create jobs for Connecticut residents and stimulate the state economy. The votes, taken during today’s Special Session of the General Assembly, will create an enhanced business climate for existing companies to grow and prosper and for a prominent new business, Jackson Laboratory, to relocate to Connecticut.

Senator Crisco said the first, wide-ranging bill streamlines the state’s permitting processes, provides tax credits and other economic incentives for business expansion, encourages private sector investment, designates funding for brownfields remediation, and improves the state’s workforce training and development programs.

“I’m particularly pleased with the plan to make permits, licenses, and other administrative requirements more accessible so things on those bureaucratic checklists don’t become obstacles to growth or relocation,” Senator Crisco said. “One highlight of this strategy is use of new technology to create a one-stop ‘portal’ through which applications and other forms become available, making interaction with the state much easier for businesses and bringing the entire operation into the 21st century.”

Senator Crisco said specifics of the workforce development portion of today’s bill include revamping educational offerings to match employers’ needs, development of training programs for manufacturers, and fortifying the state’s vocational/technical and vocational/agricultural high schools. He said employers want assurances that residents can accept the responsibilities and meet the demands of their business and industry.

The second piece of legislation provides direct economic assistance to bring Jackson Laboratory to Connecticut from Maine.

“In my view these incentives for Jackson Laboratory are simply the next logical step in a march toward bioscience and life science prominence that began with the Biomedical Research Fund, which underwrites research into causes for cancer, heart disease, and now Alzheimer’s disease and diabetes, continued in 2005 with funding for stem cell research, and will now move ahead to include breakthrough developments in personalized medicine,” Senator Crisco said. “Connecticut must continue its efforts in this area if it is to maintain its leadership position.”