Andrea Stillman

Stillman Helps Win Passage of Bill to Generate Jobs, Spur Statewide Economy

State Senator Andrea L. Stillman (D-Waterford), Senate chair of the legislature’s Education Committee, today voted with an overwhelming majority of her Senate colleagues to approve comprehensive economic development legislation. The vote, 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 new businesses to relocate to Connecticut.

Senator Stillman said the 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 Stillman 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.”

“One area with enormous potential for growth is the small business sector, and this bill encourages job creation here through a revolving loan fund, a job creation matching grant program, and special manufacturing assistance,” Senator Stillman added.

“Another commendable feature of the bill is the strategy to simulate job growth through tax policy adjustments, providing credits and other incentives to business people and entrepreneurs who commit to generating new positions, and in exchange for the state aid, retaining those positions,” Senator Stillman said. “The challenge here is to properly balance individual incentive programs: we are eager to stimulate job growth with no desire to subsidize it, and neither do we want to invest too much for too few jobs.”

Senator Stillman 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. She said employers want assurances that residents can accept the responsibilities and meet the demands of their business and industry.