(WisBusiness) THURS News Summary — 23 Apr. 2009

From WisBusiness.com …

— Unemployment rates increased in each of the state’s 12 metro regions last month compared to February as well as a year ago.

The Madison metro area had the lowest rate in March at 6.4 percent. The Janesville metro area recorded the highest rate at 13.5 percent.

See more: http://dwd.wisconsin.gov/dwd/newsreleases/2009/unemployment/0309_local_lmi.pdf

— A legal opinion from Foley & Lardner on the so-called oil profits tax proposed by Gov. Jim Doyle contends the tax will certainly invite a legal challenge, may be unconstitutional, and may violate the Commerce Clause.

Doyle has proposed the tax, which would assess oil companies as much as 3 percent of their gross profits, to fund transportation projects.

The opinion, requested by the Wisconsin Motor Carriers Association, also says “big” oil companies could avoid the tax by arranging for distributors to purchase their gas out of state, thereby forcing the retailers to bear the brunt of the tax. The opinion further states that oil companies could choose to exit the Wisconsin market.

If the tax were to be ruled unconstitutional, Wisconsin could be forced to pay back the money collected with 9 percent interest, according to the opinion.

A group of a dozen business and trade associations, including the WMCA, is floating an alternative Doyle’s plan that includes a 3-cent-per-gallon tax boost.

— Clean Wisconsin policy director Keith Reopelle told the UW-Madison Nelson Institute’s Earth Day conference that regional efforts to deal with CO2 limits may bear fruit before federal actions take shape, thanks in part to Gov. Jim Doyle.

“A lot of the governors want these energy efficiency products to be built in this area, advancing the economy as well as the energy issues in the process,” Reopelle said.

At the state level, Assembly Natural Resources Chair Rep. Spencer Black predicted ultimate success for passage of his proposed “Wisconsin Safe Climate Act” to address climate change in Wisconsin. It would require Wisconsin to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to 1990 levels by the year 2020. Proposed provisions call for mandatory reporting to monitor greenhouse gas levels, limits on greenhouse gas emissions and using market mechanisms, such as permit trading, to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

“I think Wisconsin has a very strong economic reason to pass it, that’s why we call it the ‘jobs bill,'” Black said, adding that new companies producing energy efficient equipment recently opened shop in Janesville and Wisconsin Rapids, both hit by high unemployment.

See more: http://www.wisbusiness.com/index.iml?Article=156364

— The head of the Wisconsin Public Service Commission told a gathering marking the 39th Earth Day he was cautiously optimistic a cap-and-trade bill would emerge from a Democrat-run Congress.

PSC Chair Eric Callisto told a Nelson Institute forum he preferred a system of cap and trade instead of a carbon tax. The institute is named after Earth Day founder Gaylord Nelson, a former Wisconsin governor and U.S. senator.

“We have six states and Canadian provinces working toward a cap-and-trade solution, (and this) process will educate people in Washington how we do things in the Midwest about working together on cap and trade,” he said. “Carbon tax was dead but had a spark of  life recently and currently it is on life support. I am cautiously optimistic on the cap and trade” making it through the Congress.

Callisto said energy issues wrapped in terms of climate change and renewability were fundamental to the commission’s treatment of state utilities.

“These are recurring threads in (the PSC’s) recent decisions. We treat renewability and climate change as a chance to take reasonable regulatory risks,” Callisto said.

See more: http://www.wisbusiness.com/index.iml?Article=156346

— Madison Mayor Dave Cieslewicz pledged in his state of the city address to strive to “be both progressive and pro-business.”

Cieslewicz said Madison has suffered in the economic downturn and the fact that it hasn’t been hit as hard as other places should be of little solace. He pledged to make city government more business friendly, grow high-tech industries in partnership with UW-Madison, and build the city’s image as an arts, tourism and convention center, among other things.

“This is a time when many communities are wondering which way to turn,” Cieslewicz said. “But Madison’s response to the current economic situation should be clear. Our answer – Madison’s answer – is to be bold, to invest, to move forward, to find all the possibilities in the moment. Where others can only see bad news, we should recognize opportunities.”

See his remarks: http://www.wispolitics.com/index.iml?Article=156294

— In the age of commoditization and severe price cutting, companies that fail to differentiate themselves from their competitors will face increased difficulties and even possible failure, Madison author Kay Plantes said Wednesday at the Greater Madison Chamber’s annual Business Expo luncheon.

Plantes, an MIT-trained economist who spoke to a sold-out audience of several hundred, said companies need to do more than trim costs, lay off staff, work harder, step up marketing and put more emphasis on branding. Her new book is “Beyond Price,” published by Greenleaf.

To be successful in recessionary times and poised to soar when the economy picks up, she said those who lead firms must rethink what their “business is all about.”

“Even before these hard times hit, we were seeing a rise in bankruptcies,” she said after her speech. “So if companies aren’t in growing markets like health care, they are going to be in a real trouble. There is a lot of price pressure in the market now and there can only be so many Wal-Marts.”

See more from Plantes’ speech later at http://www.wisbusiness.com

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WisBusiness.com Luncheon featuring Tim Cooley, Madison’s New Economic Development Director 

MONDAY, MAY 4 at The Madison Club

The event is open to the public, and the price for lunch is $19. Call the Madison Club to register at (608) 255-4861. The luncheon starts at 11:45 a.m. and ends at 1 p.m. 

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• University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee
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• University Research Park
• Wisconsin Technology Council

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