March 20, 2008 - 1:54pm
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Greenwald: Accessibility, Affordability Keys to Growing State's Economy

GREENWALD: ACCESSIBILITY, AFFORDABILITY
KEYS TO GROWING STATE'S ECONOMY

(TRENTON) - Assembly Budget Committee Chairman Louis D. Greenwald said today that growing New Jersey's economy relies in large part on government and business working together to expedite business permit reviews and make housing and health care more affordable.

Greenwald led a morning roundtable discussion between members of the Assembly Budget Committee and representatives of the state's business, hospital, pharmaceutical, and building communities.

Following the meeting, Greenwald (D-Camden) released the following statement:

"New Jersey's ability to weather the gathering national economic storm relies on our capacity to change perceptions about the state.

"The unfortunate view of New Jersey as business-unfriendly is exacerbated by a bureaucratic culture that can take years to approve permit applications while piling on new regulations that change the rules mid-game.

"We must take notice when Massachusetts is praised by the business community as a state that efficiently gets things done.

"New Jersey isn't helped by perceptions that the workforce in the nation's wealthiest state can find neither an affordable place to live nor reasonably priced health coverage.

"Today's dialogue will hopefully lead to both streamlined processes to help employers and housing and health care reforms that will benefit employees."

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DROSEMAN can be reached via email at droseman@njleg.org.
Related topics: Louis Greenwald, budget, economy