Back to The Newsroom

Strickland Announces Common Sense Business Regulation Process

Ohio – Governor Ted Strickland signed an executive order that provides clear guidelines to create a more efficient and effective regulatory environment in Ohio. Following a philosophy of “Common Sense Business Regulation,” the executive order requires agencies to review existing rules and processes; to treat those affected by their rules and regulatory processes as customers and treat them consistently across regions, offices, and departments; and to consolidate regulatory rules and processes. “Regulations for conducting business in Ohio exist to promote health, safety and economic vitality,” Strickland said. “A transparent, common sense approach to our state regulatory process will help us keep good-paying jobs in Ohio and make Ohio a more attractive place to bring the jobs of the future.”
Read more

AZ – Napolitano Welcomes World’s Largest Solar Power Plant. Abengoa Solar will build what it calls the largest solar power plant in the world, the company reported. It’s scheduled to go into operation by 2011. Abengoa Solar said the plant will sell the electricity it produces to Arizona Public Service Co. and bring in a total of $4 billion in revenue in 30 years. “This is a major milestone for Arizona in our efforts to increase the amount of renewable energy available in the United States,” Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano said.
Read more

AR – Beebe Works to Meet Aerospace Job Demands. Arkansas economic developers expect the state’s aviation and aerospace industry to need 5,000 new jobs over the next 10 years, and a new alliance of educators, business and government will work to help Arkansas meet that need. The alliance seeks to make Arkansas a leader in the industry by recruiting and training a qualified aerospace workforce. Speaking at the summit, Gov. Mike Beebe said that to accomplish that goal, Arkansas’ education system must be responsive to the industry’s needs. “Now in today’s world, in the globalization that we talk about ad nauseum, it is absolutely necessary that education and specifically higher education be responsive to the needs of the economic engines that drive our state and our nation,” he said.
Read more

IA – Culver Orders State to Take Lead in Energy Efficiency. Gov. Chet Culver issued an executive order which requires and promotes energy-saving practices in state government buildings. “I believe state government can and must be a model for greening Iowa’s homes, schools and businesses,” Culver said. He will tap Office of Energy Independence Director Roya Stanley to oversee the Green Government Steering Committee, which will organize the eco-friendly initiatives. The new committee will offer modifications for existing state offices to make them more green, while ensuring all future state government structures meet efficiency standards, Culver said.
Read more

KY – Beshear Unveils Fixes for Retirement System. With House Democratic leaders at his side, Gov. Steve Beshear unveiled his plan to overhaul the state retirement systems that face a $26.6 billion shortfall and the possibility of going bust in 14 years. Beshear says his plan would save the state and local government workers’ retirement system $335 million a year and would save $155 million a year for the teachers’ system, beginning July 1. Beshear’s proposal, which would cover 445,000 state and local government workers and teachers, primarily would affect future hires.
Read more

MD – O’Malley Plan Targets Crime. Capital City Safe Streets, the initiative unveiled by Gov. Martin O’Malley and House Speaker Michael E. Busch, brings together the expertise of federal and state groups like the U.S. attorney’s office and the Division of Parole and Probation to help the Annapolis Police Department, which is struggling with 20 vacancies, strengthen its identification, tracking and supervision of the city’s most violent offenders. The new partnership would give the police department access to sophisticated mapping software it needs to see where most crimes are occurring and tailor patrols and crime prevention efforts accordingly. “Public safety is the most important thing our government does,” O’Malley said. “If we don’t take care of that we can’t get to anything else. There was a time when we would heap all of this on local government. No more. It’s not their problem; it’s our problem.”
Read more

NY – Spitzer Welcomes New Jobs. Gov. Eliot Spitzer says a German company that makes compressors for industrial air conditioning and refrigeration equipment will open a new manufacturing facility in suburban Syracuse. The governor says the Bitzer Scroll plant will employ nearly 300 people in high-end engineering and manufacturing jobs. Spitzer says the state will give Bitzer a $1.4 million grant to help complete the project.
Read more

PR – Acevedo-Vilá Signs Agreement with San Diego-based Life Sciences Association to Promote Information Exchange. This effort is consistent with Governor Acevedo Vilá’s vision of positioning Puerto Rico globally as a Bio Island, furthering the Island’s economic development and promoting Puerto Rico as an attractive location for bioscience companies. “San Diego is an important area in terms of bioscience and biotechnologies,” Acevedo-Vilá said during his visit this week. “I want to establish a close relationship and partnership, and I want to learn from the best experience over there.” Per the agreement, signed between the Governor and Joseph D. Panetta, Biocom’s President, a delegation of the association’s members will visit the Island in the near future and explore the benefits that Puerto Rico offers to bioscience corporations.
Read more

WV – Manchin Supports State Alternative to Wilderness Legislation. Gov. Joe Manchin announced that he supports a State-developed alternative for wilderness legislation as a constructive improvement to the legislation introduced last week by the West Virginia congressional delegation. “Conserving West Virginia’s special places for this and future generations is one of my top priorities,” said Gov. Manchin. “I support wilderness designation for appropriate areas on our National Forests, but good decisions about wilderness require a site-by-site assessment of the positive and negative impacts of each designation. This is an excellent enhancement to the wilderness legislation introduced by our congressional delegation and I believe it will be supported by an even broader coalition of West Virginia’s citizens,” Gov. Manchin said.
Read more

Copyright & Paid for by The Democratic Governors Association

A Bullseye Project