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The Technology Agency
CTC cites tax breaks, workforce development to fuel high-tech growth in state
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Business New Haven
1/25/1999
By: BNH
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Image, tax incentives and workforce development.
Those three things, in a nutshell, comprise the Connecticut Technology Council's (CTC) 1999 public-policy agenda, unveiled January 19 at a joint meeting of the CTC and the Connecticut Venture Group at the Trumbull Marriott.
That agenda calls for continued state support for campaigns highlighting the technology strengths of the state and the continued development of industry “clusters” in Connecticut. “Continually improving the state's image as a good location for technology businesses is a major initiative of ours,” said CTC President Laura Kent.
“Our media outreach program has had success in increasing awareness and establishing a positive perception of a pro-technology business community, but we believe accelerated efforts will pay bigger dividends in the future,” Kent added.
“This agenda is a road map for policy-makers as they chart the economic future for Connecticut,” said Al Subbloie, CEO of Information Management Associates Inc. of Shelton and chairman of the technology council.
In terms of tax incentives, the CTC recommended extending the net operating loss carryforward period to meet the federal standard (from five to 20 years), permitting companies with unused tax credits to exchange those credits at a discount to the state for cash, and to provide favorable tax treatment for equity investments in startup technology companies.
In addition, the group recommended extending the six-percent non-incremental research and development credit to all companies, regardless of size.
Said Subbloie: “We have made progress over the last few sessions - increasing R&D credits and improving access to them, as well as funding lab space for high-tech industries. The state should continue to provide incentives to technology companies to ensure that Connecticut is a center of technology commerce in the global marketplace of the 21st century.”
A widely acknowledged inhibitor on technology growth in the state is the dearth of a technology-literate workforce to help fuel expansion over the next decade. Said Kent: “We have seen a widening gap between the needs of industry and the available workforce. The low unemployment rate in the state coupled with the trend of students steering away from technology-intensive disciplines has caused a severe workforce shortage in the state.”
To address that need, the technology group recommended an array of short- and long-term proposals. These include funding tuition freezes and operating budgets at public institutions of higher education; funding custom workforce-development training at the state's community-technical college as an economic-development incentive; continuing to increase the number of H-1B visas to meet industry needs; and leveraging what CTC regards as an under-utilized college and university student labor force that's already here.
“We would like to see the state continue its workforce-development efforts through the cluster initiative,” said Kent, “and where possible the state should endeavor to improve the pipeline of students in science and technology disciplines from Connecticut's K-12 and higher education institutions.”
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