Priority: Jobs
Putting Oregonians back to work in family-wage jobs for today and tomorrow
"When we talk about creating jobs in Oregon, it's important to recognize that we are making progress, but we're not letting up until recovery reaches all communities in Oregon. State government must be an accelerator and a barrier buster, helping to get our economy back on track."
-- Governor Kitzhaber, Oregon Business Summit, December 12, 2011
From encouraging small business expansion with one-stop shopping tools and services, to speeding the permitting of regionally significant industrial areas, to extending tax incentives for film and video production, to successfully launching Oregon's National Career Readiness Certificate, we are implementing strategies to get Oregonians back to work and boost per capita income in both urban and rural Oregon. But this was only the beginning to get Oregonians back to work.
Action for 2012
Oregon Investment Act
Oregon companies need access to the capital necessary for growth. The Governor is working with Treasurer Ted Wheeler to develop the Oregon Investment Act, which will allow the state to leverage public resources to encourage greater private investment in Oregon firms and better access to private credit that is now sitting on the sidelines.
Read the Oregon Investment Act Fact Sheet (pdf)
Health Care and Education
Finally, in order to be successful, we must continue making our health care and education systems more efficient and effective at a lower cost. In the two decades since Oregon reformed our worker's compensation system, Oregon businesses have saved over $14 billion. Imagine the competitive advantage those same businesses would enjoy if we could reduce the rate of medical inflation. That is exactly the long-term objective of our health care and education reform efforts.
Resources
Business Oregon
Business Oregon works to create, retain, expand and attract businesses that provide sustainable, living-wage jobs for Oregonians through public-private partnerships, leveraged funding and support of economic opportunities for Oregon companies and entrepreneurs.
Visit the Business Oregon Web site
WorkSource Oregon
WorkSource Oregon is a statewide network that stimulates job growth by connecting businesses and workers with the resources they need to succeed.
Visit the WorkSource Oregon Web site
Regional Solution Centers
Regional Solutions is an innovative, collaborative approach to community and economic development in Oregon. Each of the five centers takes a bottom-up approach to development projects -- working at the local level to identify priorities, solve problems, and seize opportunities to complete projects.
Visit the Regional Solutions Web site
Action in 2011
Major achievements in 2011 include:
- Launching the Cool Schools initiative (pdf), putting Oregonians back to work upgrading inefficient schools.
- Authorizing Business Oregon's new program (pdf) to help incentivize local businesses to expand their payrolls.
- Investing in Connect Oregon IV (pdf), to expand our multi-modal transportation system.
- Making it easier for Oregon businesses to make immediate capital investments (pdf).
- Funding Business Oregon, Oregon Innovation Council, the Credit Enhancement Fund, and the Strategic Reserve Fund.
- Encouraging small business expansion with one-stop-shopping tools and services.
- Speeding the permitting of regionally significant industrial areas (pdf).
- Authorizing state agencies to buy Oregon first (pdf), when possible.
- Funding tax incentives for film and video production and extended incentives for the biomass industry (pdf).
- Making our health care and education systems more efficient and effective at a lower cost.
