Last Updated: February 26, 2010
The Little Hoover Commission on Thursday urged the governor and the Legislature to restructure the leadership and coordination of the state's economic development programs. When the Technology, Trade and Commerce Agency was shuttered in 2003, largely due to controversy over its overseas trade offices, the state's economic development programs were dispersed to various agencies and departments. The lack of a single state economic development organization created room for local economic development associations and regional collaborations to emerge and set bottom-up priorities for economic growth. The Commission calls on the state to once again play a leading role.