In any year, the early days offer a chance to reassess and prioritize. In 2009, those impulses are perhaps felt more urgently than at any time in the recent past.
The faltering economy has affected regional businesses of all shapes and sizes, and the new leaders in Washington will face significant hurdles in getting our economy moving again. However, at the New England Council, we also see in these challenges a great opportunity to further our regional priorities and propel our six states forward.
New England businesses can lead the nation in promoting energy independence and dependability, ensure the United States of America remains a global leader in health care delivery, transform our transportation infrastructure to improve roads, bridges and airports while expanding mass transit options, and get our critical financial-services industry back on its feet and structured to reflect its global importance.
• An energy revolution: In the 19th century, Thomas Edison brought us the electric light. In the 20th century, man harnessed the power of atomic energy to power our lives. Now, the next generation of Americans must take up the mantle of energy development and make renewable forms of energy reliable, affordable and accessible.
In New England, we have the resources, talent and know-how to lead the nation and the world in the development of green jobs. No matter your opinion in the climate change debate, surely we can all agree reducing our nation’s reliance on energy from unfriendly – or potentially unfriendly – nations is a positive for the U.S. It has the simultaneous benefit of training and employing thousands of New Englanders in a nascent sector that promises a bright future. Renewable energy may not overtake current forms of energy for years, but a serious commitment to its development will pay great dividends for our region’s long-term economic health.
• A laboratory of
health care reform: The United States boasts some of the greatest medical minds and facilities in the world. We also manage to spend more than any nation on earth, yet find ourselves with an unmanageable health care system that threatens to sink the budgets of both business and families. Overhauling this system is at the top of federal policymakers’ list in this new year, and New England – from Maine to Rhode Island – offers plenty of lessons in health care reform.
Massachusetts’ widely heralded health care reform efforts are now a couple of years old, and provide instructive guidance for the national level. The reality is that we have struggled with these issues at the local level for years with varying degrees of success. As our national political leaders move to address the cost/coverage conundrum, The New England Council offers a mechanism to help translate this regional learning into federal policy.
• A commitment to regional transportation: New England has one of the oldest regional transportation infrastructures in the nation. Our highways, bridges and tunnels are crowded, our airports are often at full capacity, and passenger rail is experiencing record ridership.
When Congress addresses a reauthorization of our nation’s surface transportation priorities in the coming months, The New England Council will continue to urge our congressional delegation to focus on multistate, multiregion and multicommunity transportation projects. We acknowledge the intense pressure legislators face to return transportation funding to their constituents for local projects, and we are hopeful those projects will reflect the critical need for travel and commerce to flow freely throughout New England if we expect our regional economy to grow and compete in the coming decades.
• Strengthening and restoring confidence in the financial industry: Perhaps no industry in the past year has taken more hits than the financial-services industry. However, it remains the backbone of our regional – and national – economy. The credit it provides helps Americans buy a car, purchase a home or go to college. Credit also allows entrepreneurs to grow and expand their businesses, something critical to our nation during a time of rising unemployment. The financial-services industry has allowed many baby boomers (and will allow future generations) to accumulate and manage wealth for their retirement beyond a monthly Social Security check.
It is easy to point fingers at lapses in the financial-services industry, but it is critical to realize that the health of the financial-services industry mirrors the health of our overall economy. The New England Council will continue to work with our congressional delegation and federal regulators to strengthen the financial services industry to ensure its future vitality in an ever-more complex and diverse global economy. •
James T. Brett is president and CEO of The New England Council, the nation’s oldest regional business organization. (To learn more, go to www.NewEnglandCouncil.com.)
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