Governor John Hickenlooper gave his second State of the State address on Jan. 12, one day after the legislature convened for the 2012 session. His major theme was entrepreneurship. One of the reasons why entrepreneurship is important he said, is because Colorado will need to be smart and do more with less given that general fund revenue is $1 billion less than it was five years ago. Because of the decline in revenues, Hickenlooper had previously said his latest budget would not include the Homestead Tax Exemption for seniors; in his speech he reiterated that position. Instead, the Governor wants to augment programs that assist seniors who are most in need of financial assistance with property tax and rental assistance.
The Governor continued his push for regulatory reform, saying, “If there were ever a time when Colorado needed to spur greater support for entrepreneurship to create and attract new business, it is now. One indelible fact is that small business and entrepreneurs thrive in proximity to large corporations. They depend on each other. We know that the core business of government is not to create private sector jobs – entrepreneurs do that. But we can help. What we do here and how we do it matters.”
