CHAPTER 588ee
CONNECTICUT COMPETITIVENESS COUNCIL

      Sec. 32-730. Connecticut Competitiveness Council. (a) There is established a Connecticut Competitiveness Council which shall consist of the following members: The Governor or the Governor's designee; five representatives of business, holding the title of chief executive officer, president, chief operating officer or the equivalent of the foregoing designations, drawn from key industry clusters and firms of small, medium and large capitalization, three of whom shall be appointed by the Governor, one of whom shall be appointed by the minority leader of the House of Representatives and one of whom shall be appointed by the minority leader of the Senate; the speaker of the House of Representatives or his or her designee; the majority leader of the House of Representatives or his or her designee; the minority leader of the House of Representatives or his or her designee; the president pro tempore of the Senate or his or her designee; the majority leader of the Senate or his or her designee; the minority leader of the Senate or his or her designee; two representatives of organized labor, one of whom shall be appointed by the speaker of the House of Representatives and one of whom shall be appointed by the president pro tempore of the Senate; two representatives of academic institutions, one of whom shall be appointed by the majority leader of the House of Representatives and one of whom shall be appointed by the majority leader of the Senate; the Commissioners of Developmental Services, Transportation and Higher Education; the Labor Commissioner and the director of the Office of Workforce Competitiveness.

      (b) Appointed members of the council shall serve for four-year terms which shall commence October 1, 2010, except that members first appointed shall have the following terms: Members initially appointed by the Governor and members appointed by the majority leader of the House of Representatives and the minority leader of the House of Representatives shall serve a term of two years, and members appointed by the speaker of the House of Representatives, the president pro tempore of the Senate, the majority leader of the Senate and the minority leader of the Senate shall initially serve a term of four years. The appointing authority shall fill any vacancy by appointment for the unexpired portion of the term vacated. A majority of the council shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of any business. The members of the council shall serve without compensation, except for necessary expenses incurred in performing their duties.

      (c) The Governor shall appoint a chairperson of the council.

      (d) The council shall have the following powers and duties: (1) Encourage and assist private sector industry cluster activation and effectiveness; (2) advise and assist the executive and legislative branches of state government and the private sector on matters relating to economic competitiveness, industry cluster and economic development; (3) monitor, assess and evaluate the activation and effectiveness of industry clusters in the state; (4) develop a medium and long-term strategy to enhance the development and economic competitiveness of industry-driven clusters in the state; (5) recommend definitions of industry clusters; (6) obtain from any executive branch department, board, commission or other agency of the state such assistance and data as necessary to carry out the purposes of this section; (7) solicit, receive and accept aid, grants or contributions from any source of money, property or labor or other things of value, to be held, used and applied to carry out the purposes of this section, subject to the conditions upon which such grants and contributions may be made, including, but not limited to, gifts or grants from any department or agency of the United States or the state; and (8) perform such other acts as may be necessary and appropriate to carry out the objectives and purposes of this section.

      (e) The council shall meet at least quarterly.

      (f) Not later than January 1, 2011, and annually thereafter, the council shall submit a report, in accordance with the provisions of section 11-4a, to the Governor, the Commissioner of Economic and Community Development and the joint standing committee of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to commerce on the competitiveness of the state's industry and economy.

      (P.A. 10-75, S. 19.)

      History: P.A. 10-75 effective July 1, 2010.

      Secs. 32-731 to 32-740. Reserved for future use.