Hartford Business Journal

14 Hartford Business Journal • December 21, 2015 www.HartfordBusiness.com "We do wish more was done on the struc- tural reforms that the state really needs so we can deal with the budget deficits coming up next year and years after," he said. At the same time, Brennan acknowl- edged the significance of lawmakers' will- ingness to implement tax clawbacks amidst a worsening budget picture. "The fact that we were even talking about improvements to tax policy at a time when we're looking at deficits [is] recognition that if we don't have economic growth we're only going to continue to have problems going forward." Brennan said 2015 was challenging. "However I think it was a positive year in that we certainly raised awareness about the impact of certain policies … the impact it has on our ability to create and sustain good jobs in Connecticut," Brennan said. Brennan is also pleased CBIA helped bat back a $15 minimum wage bill targeted at large employers, as well as a bill that would have placed strict rules on providing employees a set work schedule well in advance. In September, CBIA was already think- ing about 2016. It began organizing discus- sions between chambers of commerce and trade associations to identify legislative priorities for the year ahead. While Brennan felt pressure to ratchet up the rhetoric this year, he said he's pleased with how CBIA has expressed itself. "We were aggressive, but doing it in a responsible way," he said. "It didn't get par- tisan or personal." And the CT20x17 campaign to improve the state's business friendliness wasn't a wash, he said. Though Connecticut fell from 36th to 39th in Forbes' business competitiveness ranking and from 42nd to 44th in the Tax Founda- tion's ranking, CNBC ranked the state 33rd out of 50 states, up 13 spots from 2014. n role of government to protect those people. "We had to cut other things," she said. She said the General Assembly is also not going to get credit for the property tax relief it enacted. "You don't get reward- ed for things that take years," she said, explaining her town will receive $5 mil- lion in state aid in 2017 due to one-half percent of the sales tax being diverted to property tax relief. That equals 2.5 per- cent of the town's budget. Local property owners would have seen a tax increase without it. "The property tax is so regres- sive," she said. n price freezes, that eventually led Tenet Health- care to walk away from its deals. Prospect is smaller than Tenet and also focused on risk- based contracts, which many states, including Connecticut, are pushing to reduce healthcare costs and improve care quality. "Their operating models are very differ- ent," Karl said. "Tenet was very large and focused on creating scale to reduce costs. Prospect is focused on risk-based con- tracts, moving away from fee for service." Karl said state budget cuts to hospitals, which he says cost ECHN $7.9 million in fis- cal 2015 and $3.6 million in fiscal 2016, didn't scare Prospect away from the deal, but it did require ECHN to cut costs, particularly in the wake of a $1.9 million loss in fiscal 2015. All ECHN hospital departments are now running on utility metrics, which means when volume goes up or down, staffing lev- els fluctuate accordingly. In addition, ECHN saw a 5 percent vol- ume decline in its emergency department in 2015, as more patients made use of less expensive community services like primary care doctors or walk-in clinics. Karl also scoffs at the idea that exor- bitant executive pay is to blame for high healthcare costs, arguing that CEO pay for all Connecticut hospitals adds up to about $30 million, while Malloy proposed cutting $500 million from hospitals. Looking forward into 2016, Karl said his focus will be on completing the Prospect deal and moving ECHN closer to adopting more risk-based contracts. n Quick said the company's internal metrics show it has grabbed market share from com- petitors, which include Cox and Comcast, though he would not reveal to what extent. "Our customer acquisition rate is up," he said. Expiring promotional pricing created rev- enue challenges during parts of this year, the company's CEO Daniel McCarthy told analysts. That so-called "pricing migration" could be seen in Frontier's revenue for the first three quarters of 2015, during which residential revenue fell 3.6 percent from the first to second quarter before leveling off in the third quarter. Commercial revenue, meanwhile, has grown by 4.3 percent. Another issue Frontier faced was increased competition. Both Comcast and Cox targeted Frontier's early technical struggles. "Ready for better business Internet with- out disruption?" asked one Comcast ad. Cox was blunt: "Just because you've been switched to Frontier doesn't mean you need to stay with them," an ad read. "It's a competitive marketplace that we play in. There's no question about it," Quick said. He said Frontier sought to entice new cus- tomer subscriptions and service upgrades by offering extra perks like Visa gift cards, Ama- zon Prime memberships and discounted Google Nest digital home thermostats. In September, Frontier rolled out ultra- high speed Internet (100 megabits per sec- ond) to certain areas of Connecticut. It also became a Hartford Yard Goats sponsor, and is providing wireless Internet and video inside the team's new downtown ballpark. It also sponsored the Special Olym- pics and Girl Scouts, and recently became a sponsor of Bridgeport's Webster Arena. The company has pledged to spend more than $400 million on its network infrastructure over the next few years, though Quick said he was unable to disclose specific details of what the company had completed in its first year. Also this year, Frontier reopened a pre- vious AT&T call center in New London and a bilingual call center in New Haven, which serves customers in 28 states. "We've walked the talk on jobs, we've walked the talk on taking care of customers," Quick said. n Bye Brennan Karl Quick 5 we Watched in 2015 P u b l i s h i n g J u n e , 2 0 1 6 | i n P r i n t a n d O n l i n e Be a Part of Doing Business in Connecticut 2016 Economic Vitality, Workforce Development, Research and Innovation for Connecticut. For more information contact Donna Collins, Associate Publisher at 860-236-9998 ext. 121, or dcollins@HartfordBusiness.com Overview: D oing Business in Connecticut is an annual glossy four color magazine — in print and digital formats — showcasing Connecticut's many economic development opportunities, and the attributes that make Connecticut a special place to work, live and play. Doing Business in Connecticut examines the many advantages Connecticut offers companies to grow their operations in the state and highlights why Connecticut is in a prime position to attract new businesses. Doing Business in Connecticut is designed to provide government officials, presidents, CEOs, owners, and top level executives an overview of the state's resources. 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Participation Opportunities: Sponsorships 2-page Company Profile Spreads Advertising We are currently reserving advertising space for: > Town Property and Development Initiatives > Commercial Real Estate Properties > Franchise Opportunities (based in and out of CT) A Publication Of:

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