Government Needs to do More to Make WI Attractive for Job Creation, Business Leaders Say

WISCONSIN JOBS NOW Task Force holds first roundtable discussion in Green Bay

[Madison, Wisc…] Today’s WISCONSIN JOBS NOW Task Force roundtable discussion in Green Bay was a great first step in developing effective strategies for rebuilding our economy, Task Force Co-Chairs Sen. Randy Hopper (R-Fond du Lac) and Rep. Rich Zipperer (R-Pewaukee) said today.

“It was refreshing to hear ideas for job creation from actual job

creators instead of the usual career politicians who control Madison right now,” Hopper said. “Jobs aren’t created in the State Capitol. They’re created by people like those that attended the roundtable. They made it clear that we can’t create jobs by growing government instead of the private sector.”

“What we heard today is that even in the midst of the current economic downturn, government policies are doing more to harm job creation than help it,” Zipperer said. “We need to make Wisconsin more attractive for job creation by lowering taxes, streamlining regulation, ending budget raids, and encouraging job growth and business expansion. I think this was a great start towards developing the positive ideas needed to get our economy moving again.”

Today’s roundtable brought together more than 25 local business owners and job creators to brainstorm ideas for rebuilding Wisconsin’s economy and creating jobs. Among the ideas discussed today were:

creating tax incentives for retaining and creating jobs locally;
repealing the recently approved 11% tax hike on businesses;
encouraging patient driven health care options like Health Savings Accounts;
streamlining environmental regulations to make it easier for employers to navigate while respecting the environment;
considering the unintended consequences of increasing the minimum wage;
enact policies that loosen rather than tighten the availability of credit for employers;
streamlining real estate regulations to encourage home sales.

The WISCONSIN JOBS NOW Task Force will hold additional roundtable discussions in the coming weeks in the Milwaukee area and Eau Claire. The Task Force is also encouraging individual legislators to conduct meetings with job creators in their districts and submit their findings for inclusion in the final report.

Written testimony may be submitted here. All ideas and suggestions will be considered as the Task Force forms concrete plans to rebuild Wisconsin’s economy. These suggestions will be submitted to the Legislature in a Job Creation Report.

Calendar of Events

04.06.2009 | Rothschild

Location: Wausau Tile, Board Room

9001 Bus. Hwy 51

Rothschild

3:00pm – 5:00pm

04.06.2009 | Rhinelander

Location: Great Lakes Timber Professionals Association, 3243 Golf Course Road

Rhinelander

11:00am – 1:00pm

03.30.2009 | Eau Claire Area
Location: Community Room, RCU Corporate Center, 200 Riverfront Terrace, Eau Claire
1:00pm-3:00pm

03.23.2009 | Milwaukee Area
Location: BioResearch, Inc. 9275 N. 49th Street Suite 150, Brown Deer, WI
1:00pm-3:00pm

03.10.2009 | Green Bay
Roundtable Discussion with Business Leaders Rock Garden Banquet and Conference Center, 1951 Bond Street, Green Bay
11:00am to 1:00pm

03.03.2009 | Madison
Press Conference Announcing Creation of WI Jobs Now Task Force Assembly Parlor, State Capitol 1:00pm

Senator Randy Hopper and Representative Rich Zipperer listen to employers sharing their thoughts on Wisconsin's job climate during a roundtable discussion in Green Bay.

Green Bay area employers share their suggestions and ideas during the WISCONSIN JOBS NOW Task Force roundtable discussion.