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Anderson — Legislative activity during the current session of the Indiana General Assembly is being closely followed by local business leaders and entrepreneurs who hope to see signs of an economic turnaround in the new year.
Sustained inflation has eased the spending habits of thousands of local consumers and reduced the salaries of many workers employed in discretionary sectors such as restaurants and retailers.
Clayton Whitson, President and CEO of the Madison County Chamber of Commerce, said:
“It’s a bit of a strange time right now with inflation and high prices, but at the same time we continue to create record numbers of jobs. We still need a lot of jobs.”
Madison County’s November 2022 unemployment rate was 3.1%, only slightly higher than the statewide average of 2.8%, but the county’s per capita personal income was $45,755, the lowest among 92 states in the state. Ranked 78th.
Sluggish revenues, combined with rising prices for food, gasoline and other essentials, remain the main factor restraining spending, according to local business leaders.
“Inflation is probably the biggest factor driving everything,” said Rob Sparks, executive director of Madison County’s Corporation for Economic Development. “It will affect the way people do things. We can absorb some of these costs for a period of time, but it’s only for a period of time, not indefinitely.”
Sparks added that the local labor market appears to be weathering the storm well and expects healthy growth to continue in the region in 2023. are competing with each other, which inevitably leads to higher wages.
“I think the volatility we’ve experienced over the last 18 months will stabilize,” he said. “[The company]is optimistic about where it’s headed, and that’s a good thing.”
Over the next few months, Whitson said he plans to follow legislative legislation that provides tax incentives to help small businesses in the early stages of growth and scaling. The funding will also de-risk startups and “will boost our entrepreneurial ecosystem,” he said.
With a more cautious eye, Whitson said he will also track conversations among lawmakers that could lead to legislation that would shift the tax burden from residential property to other tax classes.
“I know everyone wants to say we need to tax businesses more, but in reality, it puts an undue burden on the small business community.”
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