(Host) Governor-elect Jim Douglas will be formally sworn into office a week from Thursday. Douglas says he has some very specific goals for the first “100 days” of his new administration.
VPR’s Bob Kinzel reports:
(Kinzel) When Jim Douglas takes the oath of office next Thursday afternoon in the House Chamber at the Statehouse, it will mark the first time in over 11 years that Vermont will have a new gubernatorial administration.
Douglas says implementing stronger economic development programs will be his top priority and he wants to meet with most of the state’s largest employers in the first three months of his new term:
(Douglas) “Well, an administration is only 730 days long and it’s very important to me to start off by hitting the ground running, by addressing many of the issues that I talked about during the recent campaign. The most important concern on the part of my administration and many Vermonters is revitalizing our economy. We need to know what Vermont employers need, what they want, what their concerns are, how to help them best to create jobs for the people of this state. So I think it’s very important for me to get around early in my tenure and, in fact even before it begins, to meet with the major employers of our state.”
(Kinzel) Douglas is also vowing to make Act 250 reform a centerpiece of his legislative initiatives this year.
(Douglas) “I plan to present a permit reform proposal to the General Assembly during this half of the biennium. There are some changes that can be made without Legislative action, changing the culture of state government, a more business friendly and employee friendly atmosphere in the agencies that relate to the jobs issue. But there may be some changes that require the Legislature to act and I plan to present them this year.”
(Kinzel) Douglas has already held several jobs summits in various parts of the state and he hopes to hold at least a half dozen additional forums in the first 100 days of his new term.
For Vermont Public Radio, I’m Bob Kinzel in Montpelier.