Bristol GOP Lawmakers Vow Continued Support for Small Manufacturers
Bristol’s Republican legislators said today they planned to continue to support Connecticut’s manufacturing sector after the Democrat-controlled state Senate on June 20 failed to override Gov. Dannel P. Malloy’s veto of a measure that would have allowed for tax credits to train future factory workers.
The bill would have extended the $7,500 manufacturing apprenticeship tax credit to pass-through entities, allowing their owners and partners to claim the credit against their personal income taxes.
“We’re talking about a common sense policy to help our job creators and train more workers, ” Rep. Whit Betts said. “It’s a fantastic idea. Passing this and overriding the governor’s veto should have been a layup for the state legislature, but nothing pro-business is easy under the current one-party rule in Hartford. The legislature’s failure to override the governor’s veto points to the need to replace the short-sighted, tone deaf decision-makers at the State Capitol.”
“Small manufacturers in Bristol and throughout our state drive our economy,” Rep. Cara Pavalock said. “As lawmakers, we need to do all we can to help those manufacturers thrive. This legislation was a prime example. We will keep pushing for policies like this because they truly will help fill our short-term and long-term workforce needs.”
“The Democrat-controlled State Senate spoke volumes in not even bothering to take this bill up, ” Sen. Henri Martin said. “They control the agenda, and they missed a golden opportunity. The Democrat leadership’s inaction is frustrating, but we can use that frustration to shine a light on positive policies like this which can help small manufacturers in our region. We won’t be deterred in our fight to improve Connecticut’s business climate and to better train our future workforce. We will continue to raise awareness of the need for this legislation until it eventually does become law. And we will always listen to the concerns of our state manufacturing industry, because these businesses are our backbone.”
In addition to Betts, Pavalock, and Martin, and the Connecticut Association of Smaller Manufacturers (CASM) also supported the measure.
CASM is comprised of the Smaller Manufacturers Association of Waterbury (SMA), the New Haven Manufacturers Association (NHMA), Manufacturers Education and Training Alliance (METAL) of Bridgeport and the New England Spring & Metal stamping Association and collectively represents over 400 companies with more than ten percent of the employees in the state’s manufacturing sector.
CASM’s testimony on the bill can be viewed here:
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