By Rich Lindsey, CSG West Policy Consultant

A report by the National Governors Association Center for Best Practices last year on state economic development agencies noted that state efforts would best be served if they focused on existing businesses within their states. If focusing on existing businesses is considered a best practice, what can a state do and is there help?

One resource states can use to help focus on existing businesses is the National Center of Economic Gardening (NCEG). The primary focus of the NCEG is to encourage the development of existing growth companies in a state. This is accomplished by offering strategic information designed specifically for a company as determined through a needs assessment. The purpose of the NCEG programs is to directly propel a company into the next phase of growth.

The strategy behind economic gardening was developed in Littleton, Colorado. Littleton practiced economic gardening for 20 years and in that period jobs grew from 15,000 to 30,000, and sales tax revenue tripled. These results happened without recruiting businesses, using tax incentives, and implementing tax rebates. Keep reading... 

Nearly six months into the open enrollment period for the Affordable Care Act (ACA), the Nelson A. Rockefeller Institute of Government released a series of reports giving an overview of ACA implementation in Western states. Each of the reports provides an overview of what policy decisions have been made, what tasks have been completed, who is managing the implementation, and an overview of outreach efforts. The reports are available for eight Western states and are linked below, a report for Utah is coming soon. More Information...