Making Georgia more attractive for businesses to expand jobs or locate here dominated the state Legislature’s agenda during the recently concluded session.
We walked into the Capitol each day committed to give confidence to job creators that Georgia is open for business. We strengthened the underpinnings of a healthy business climate through legislation and budget decisions that foster workforce-ready residents, plentiful water and energy, cash for small businesses to expand, increased freight infrastructure and low taxes.
At a time when Washington has fostered economic uncertainty among citizens and businesses, we chose a decidedly different path.
Without fanfare, we acted with the calm conviction that creating jobs through a strong business environment beats “stimulus” checks or government programs in moving Georgians toward prosperity.
First, we made sure the state lived within its means with no increased taxes. The state budget is 14 percent smaller than last year’s. Our unwavering message to businesses considering expansion or relocation is that Georgia stands ready to support their efforts to provide jobs, not tax them into insolvency or the arms of another state.
Simply look to Illinois for what happens when you raise taxes to fill a shortfall. Overnight, companies with long-standing ties to the state, such as Caterpillar Inc., publicly entertained the idea of taking thousands of jobs with them to a new home.
Acting to maintain a strong bond rating — only eight states, including Georgia, have maintained an AAA bond rating through the recession — and prudent budgeting allowed us to invest $32 million toward deepening the Savannah Harbor. We are committed to keeping Georgia with the most productive port on the Eastern Seaboard, prepared for giant container ships steaming through an expanded Panama Canal beginning in 2014.
We passed legislation to streamline financing for reservoir projects while putting $80 million in bond funding toward reservoir construction. As we stare down the barrel of a pending federal court decision in the tri-state water wars, Georgia continues to push toward a secure water supply for its residents and businesses.
Appreciating small businesses’ critical role in providing opportunities, we created a private capital fund totaling $125 million to help those struggling to secure traditional funding for expansion in these difficult times. Additionally, to drive down costs for businesses providing employee health insurance, we eliminated the ban on purchases of health insurance plans across state lines.
To further a workforce-ready citizenry, we preserved the HOPE scholarship and grant programs. These signature initiatives help keep the best and brightest at home while providing broad access to technical colleges for skills development and retraining.
By putting jobs as the highest priority, Georgians from all corners of the state will benefit from initiatives, mostly unheralded, championed by my fellow legislators.
Jan Jones, R-Milton, is speaker pro tem of the Georgia House of Representatives.
