U.S. Chamber Calls for Policies to Spur Job Creation in Annual State of American Business Address

Donohue Outlines Specific Steps for Creating Jobs; Says 'No priority is more important than putting jobless Americans back to work.'

WASHINGTON, Jan. 12 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- In his annual State of American Business address, U.S. Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Thomas J. Donohue called upon leaders in government, business, labor, and across society to unite around the ambitious goal of creating 20 million jobs over the next decade.

"Our nation faces many big challenges, but no priority is more important than putting jobless Americans back to work," Donohue said. "Over the long term, only a strong private sector -- backed by sensible government policies with rational levels of regulation and taxation and a reasonable degree of certainty -- can create 20 million jobs."

Donohue covered five key areas where both government and business can work to achieve economic growth and job creation.

1. Expand U.S. exports around the world: We need a bold and aggressive trade policy that opens markets and eliminates the barriers that stand in the way of our workers, businesses, and farmers. If we fail to approve pending deals with Korea, Colombia, and Panama we will not only miss opportunities to create new jobs -- we will lose existing jobs.
2. Rebuild the nation's infrastructure: Expanding both private and public sector investments in our transportation, energy, water, and broadband systems will help reemploy many jobless Americans. The private sector can be the main driver of new, innovative projects in transportation, energy, water systems, and our communications capacity.
3. Ensure investment in clean energy technologies starting with nuclear: We must enable breakthroughs in new energy technologies by addressing excessive costs and removing regulatory impediments. More than 380 promising energy projects -- including wind, solar, and other renewable -- are currently being delayed.
4. Expand credit across our economy and revitalize our capital markets: We must ensure that businesses, especially small businesses, can readily access credit by preserving and strengthening credit choices and capital access across the economy. We will achieve that only if Congress and regulators improve rather than strangle our capital markets in their current reform efforts, and if productive capital is left in the economy rather than taken away through massive tax increases.
5. Address economic uncertainties -- in tax, health, environmental, labor, legal, and fiscal policies -- that are hampering economic growth: We must recognize that our weak economy simply could not sustain all the new taxes and mandates under consideration including those in current proposed health care legislation. At the same time, preserving the reduced rates on capital gains and dividend income, addressing the AMT for both businesses and individuals, and other tax reforms could provide businesses with needed certainty and capital incentives.  

Donohue noted that the Chamber's recently launched Campaign for Free Enterprise will promote this jobs agenda around the country over the course of 2010. The first of these events begin tomorrow when Donohue addresses the Louisiana Association of Business and Industry and will be followed later this month with events in Arizona, Illinois, New Jersey, North Carolina, and Virginia.

"Free enterprise breathes life and energy into the American Dream," stated Donohue. "Sadly, today the American Dream seems like an impossible dream for millions of workers and their families. We must pull together as a country to change that. We must stand up for our economic freedoms and ensure that all Americans can share in freedom's bounty."

Donohue's full speech is available at:  www.uschamber.com/sab/2010speech

The U.S. Chamber is the world's largest business federation representing more than 3 million businesses and organizations of every size, sector, and region.

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SOURCE U.S. Chamber of Commerce