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Discussion – Ohio Lt. Gov. John Husted, right, makes a point during a roundtable discussion Tuesday in Staubenville. Among those in attendance were, from left, Jefferson County Port Authority Executive Director Robert Naylor, John Cucarese, immediate past chairman of the Jefferson County Chamber of Commerce; and Laurie Labishak, chamber chair. — Ross Gallabrese
STEUBENVILLE – Finding sites ready for development, ensuring the availability of a skilled workforce and eliminating outdated regulations are important components of Ohio’s growth.
That’s Lt. Gov. John Husted’s message to community and business leaders at a roundtable discussion Tuesday at the Jeffco Event Center.
“A lot of great things are happening in our region.” Husted said during an hour-long presentation at the Jefferson County Chamber of Commerce. “That means we’re creating more jobs than we can find people to fill, and all of this is happening at a time when we’re dealing with a declining demographic.”
The number of workers between 25 and 60 is lower than it was in 2010 and is projected to fall within a decade — and the same in every state bordering Ohio, Husted said.
“These are the challenges we face.” He added.
The state continues to be attractive, moving from the 40s to the teens and into the 10s as a business location in some listings.
“Over the past four years, we’ve done 48 jobs from coast to coast to Ohio.” Husted said.
Just last year, the state landed one of the largest projects in the country when Intel announced it was bringing a $20 billion manufacturing job to the central part of the state. In the year The microchip manufacturing complex, which is expected to begin operations in 2025, is expected to employ more than 3,000 people — that’s after the 7,000 workers needed to build the facility in New Albany.
“When we landed the Intel project, a lot of people in the province said, ‘Why not in our community?’ Husted said. “The bottom line is this is the only site in the state that was ready to handle it.”
An example of this is where Governor Mike DeWine has allocated $2.5 billion in the state budget to be used to develop sites across the state. The goal, he said, is to have a new business location within easy driving distance of anyone in Ohio.
Husted said that included in this year’s budget request is $300 million for career centers around the state, including $200 million to expand the facilities and $100 million to equip them.
“We need to build those to help more high school students graduate job-ready.” Husted said.
That shrinking workforce, Husted added, means employers must be willing to look at new options when it comes to hiring workers. This includes using technologies that enable people with disabilities to enter the workforce and extending second chances to those who have been convicted of a crime or have recovered from addiction.
“It’s all in their hands.” he said. We need to have everyone in the game to build the workforce we need. You can’t run a business if you don’t have the employees.
Making the state more regulatory-friendly will also play a role in business expansion, Husted said.
“We’re going to eliminate — and I know this sounds impossible — one-third of the administrative code.” He explained. “A third of the rules – that’s 5 million words. They mostly deal with colleges and universities and building codes and lotteries. All these institutions have outdated and duplicated things – they don’t need to be in there.
It includes facilitating the process of submitting paperwork with the state by allowing additional items to be sent electronically and registered with a digital signature.
Making sure the state is family-friendly is also important, the lieutenant governor said.
“We have a provision in the budget that would require social media companies to provide parental consent before allowing children to access social media apps.” Husted said. “Nobody you know can walk into your child’s room and talk to your children at home. However, this is what is happening every day if you are not monitoring your social media apps.”
Dewayne’s annual budget includes a $2,500 per child tax cut, Husted said, which should be a big help for young people with families.
“This is very important for parents trying to raise children.” Husted said. “We’re trying to make Ohio a better place for working families and help families with children. When we talk about a workforce – your future workforce is these children.
Husted said the administration is being aggressive on all of these fronts and trying to move the state forward.
Because this is Ohio time, as the governor often says. We have a lot of businesses that want to move here and want to invest here, and we have to run the results. We want to make the most of the time we have now. he said.
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