McCormick says economic development strategy needs to focus more on people, not just businesses

Democratic gubernatorial candidate Jennifer McCormick said Indiana needs to refocus its economic development strategy.

McCormick unveiled proposals Thursday that she said prioritize people, not just businesses.

McCormick said state government has spent too much time focused on certain regions, creating “pockets of success.”

“We still have 92 counties that we need to pay attention to,” McCormick said.

McCormick’s proposals include more local input into economic development strategies and better support for existing Indiana businesses, notably smaller ones.

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McCormick also wants to spend more on tourism and quality-of-place projects like affordable housing and cultural amenities.

She said finding the money for that involves changes at the Indiana Economic Development Corporation.

“The blank checkbook and the question of spending and the lack of transparency and accountability and the question of our natural resources — there are a lot of pieces to that that we need to rein in,” McCormick said.

McCormick also wants to reduce the length of time that new businesses receive tax breaks for locating in Indiana.

Brandon is our Statehouse bureau chief. Contact him at bsmith@ipbs.org or follow him on Twitter at @brandonjsmith5.