Federation of Connecticut Taxpayer Organizations

In Nebraska, Gov. Dave Heineman enacted the biggest tax cut in state history, and the state's unemployment rate of 4.2 percent is now the second lowest in the nation.

In Connecticut, Gov. Dannel P. Malloy enacted the largest tax increase in state history this year, and the state's unemployment rate of 9.1 percent ranks in the bottom half in the nation.

Despite their different approaches, the two governors stood side by side at a Hartford hotel Tuesday at a news conference regarding the best ways for states to grow jobs.

Heineman, a Republican who chairs the National Governors Association, came to Hartford after Malloy agreed to host one of four regional economic summits that will stretch from Nashville to Omaha to Seattle.

The tax cuts, he said, allowed Nebraska to be ranked by the CNBC cable channel in the top 10 as a business-friendly state.

"It made a real difference in our tax-competitive climate, our business-friendly climate,'' Heineman told reporters. "We know we need to do more. It's all of these things combined. It's not just one. It's taxes. It's regulation. It's workforce development. It's education.''

Since taking office in January, Malloy said, he has spent much of his time "straightening out the state's finances'' and balancing the two-year, $40.1 billion budget. Part of that included increases in most of the state's taxes, including those on income, sales, and corporate profits.

"I believe we're moving in the right direction,'' Malloy said. "The reason I did what I did with respect to the budget was so that I could look business in the face and say, 'Listen, I believe we've got the bulk of our problem behind us. We've balanced a budget. We've taken the steps necessary to wrestle a structural deficit to the ground, and we move forward.' ''

"I think we are a tax haven,'' Malloy, a Democrat, told reporters. "Although our personal taxes may be high, primarily driven by our over-reliance on property taxes, if you look at our corporate tax structure, we have one of the lowest effective rates on the corporate level.''

Malloy, Heineman, and Gov. Jack Markell of Delaware were the three main participants in the National Governors Association summit. Heineman, who arranged the session, said he made his first call to Malloy to schedule a conference in Connecticut. The conference includes about 10 panel discussions over two days at the Hilton Hotel in downtown Hartford with participants from all New England states.

Top economic development officials from Connecticut, including University of Connecticut board of trustees chairman Larry McHugh, MetroHartford Alliance CEO Oz Griebel, Connecticut Business and Industry Association CEO John Rathgeber, General Assembly commerce committee co-chairman Jeffrey Berger of Waterbury, commerce ranking member L. Scott Frantz of Greenwich, and Malloy's budget chief, Ben Barnes, were in attendance.

Malloy was one of the early speakers in a small hotel ballroom to tell the story of the economic strengths of Connecticut.

"We write more life [insurance] policies than any other state in the nation,'' Malloy told the multi-state crowd. "If you're going to build a submarine or a jet engine, you're more likely to do it here than any other state in the nation.''

In an attempt to improve the state, Malloy says Connecticut needs to move more quickly in issuing permits to businesses. It also takes 18 to 24 months to approve a new academic major at the state colleges and universities, and the state needs a "much more rapid'' decision-making process, he said.

In Nebraska, Heineman said that everyone needs to promote the state, including the college professors at the University of Nebraska who should be recruiting students in the same way that the sports coaches are recruiting athletes.

"That gets them a little excited when they think they might be held accountable,'' Heineman said of the professors.

In Nebraska, the state has reduced the income, property and sales taxes during the seven years that Heineman has been governor. With 1.8 million residents, Nebraska's population is about half the size of Connecticut, but its state budget is far, far lower. Connecticut spends about $20 billion annually, while Nebraska spends about $3.5 billion. In addition, Nebraska has a unicameral legislature - meaning that there are 49 state senators and no members of the state House of Representatives.

The two-day conference marked the first time in recent memory that three governors have appeared in Hartford at the same time. Rhode Island Gov. Lincoln Chafee was scheduled to participate, but a last-minute schedule change prevented his attendance.

http://www.courant.com/community/hartford/hc-four-governors-hartford-1012-20111010,0,3873368.story