Office of the Governor: NGA TAPS CORZINE TO HEAD ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE

FROM THE OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR

July 17, 2008

Contact: Sean Darcy
Jim Gardner
609-777-2600


WASHINGTON—The National Governors Association (NGA) today announced Governor Jon S. Corzine will serve as the chairman of the organization’s Economic Development and Commerce Committee.

  Governor Corzine predicted a busy tenure as head of the committee, as economic issues have moved front-and-center nationwide.

  “Governors are extraordinarily uneasy about the state of the economy,” Governor Corzine said. “A lot of the discussion at the NGA and within the economic development committee is how we get this economy going. This is a national problem, a problem that is quickly evolving into a crisis.”

  Governor Corzine said issues to be addressed would include encouraging Congress and President Bush to advance an economic stimulus package, as well as assistance with the escalating costs of Medicaid and a long-term plan to maintain and expand the nation’s strained highways and other infrastructure.

  “We have struggled with this here in New Jersey, everybody else has struggled with it, and almost no one has the resources to address it in an adequate format,” Governor Corzine said.

  The National Governors Association is a public policy organization that includes the governors of the 50 states, three territories and two commonwealths. NGA provides governors and their senior staff with services that include representing states on Capitol Hill and before the Administration on key federal issues.