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Regional Agenda
Last night, Niagara County Legislature Chairman Bill Ross, Erie County Executive Joel Giambra and Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown joined the Partnership to roll out the 2006 collaborative Regional Agenda, a ?priority list? of state and federal economic development policy and funding requests.
The Partnership has coordinated this annual joint agenda for more than five years to help the region ?speak with one voice? to Albany and Washington. It started when the word came up from Washington that Buffalo Niagara would benefit from a collaborative approach, rather than one that was uncoordinated and ultimately competitive for dollars. And that?s what?s happened since ? our public sector partners have looked beyond their municipal boundaries and focused on projects and policy initiatives that will have region-wide impact.
We applaud their collaborative spirit. They and the Partnership have agreed upon priorities that will have the largest return on investment for economic development spending, and will make our region as a whole more attractive for business retention and expansion as well as new investment and jobs.
The media likes to focus on the big-dollar funding requests for individual projects in the agenda. The Partnership, however, believes that without specific policy changes at the state and federal level, the benefit of the projects proposed for the Buffalo waterfront or Niagara Falls and elsewhere won?t have the large scale, long term impact they can and should.
So, the top priority policy items in this year?s agenda are:
1). We have to get one of our region?s best assets ? our location on the border -- ?right.? We?re fortunate that our WNY congressional delegation is working hard on this issue. They understand that our region depends on the efficient flow of people and goods across the border with Canada, and that policy changes are needed to prevent unacceptable delays in Buffalo and Fort Erie bridge plaza construction and more broadly, to avoid serious economic losses to the local economy. Specifically, we need a final decision on Shared Border Management between the U.S. and Canadian governments and, rather than a passport or expensive single-use ID card, acceptance of a ?new age? driver?s license or other alternative ID at the northern border that is inexpensive, secure and has more than one use.
2). Just as our border location is an asset, so should be the Niagara Power Project. But rather than having sufficient inexpensive electricity to stimulate investment in, and retain jobs in, the region, New York state taxes make our commercial energy rates the third highest in the nation, and state and federal legislation and regulations have recently limited the amount of low cost hydropower our region can use as an economic development incentive for companies that want to expand or move here. This is a serious detriment, and one that needs to be addressed with a sense of urgency in Albany and Washington. In the simplest terms, we need government actions to ensure sufficient low cost hydropower generated at the Niagara Power Project to support economic development within a 30-mile radius of the facility.
3). Last week, I emailed you about Unshackle Upstate, which seeks an improved approach in Albany to taxpayer-funded economic development spending and reform of anticompetitive laws and regulations that create an unfriendly business climate in Upstate New York. Bottom line: People follow jobs, and none of the other economic development projects on our list will keep people in our region as effectively as viable employment will. If you haven?t already, visit www.unshackleupstate.com to learn more and, most importantly, click on the ?Tell Albany? button at the center of the homepage to tell state officials that we need their help if we?re to continue to make payroll here and keep important jobs in the region.
As always, I welcome your comments and questions.
Sincerely,
Andrew J. Rudnick
President & CEO
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Regional Agenda
