/ Modified feb 26, 2014 7:37 p.m.

Economic Development is Tucson's Focus for 2014

Mayor Rothschild continues to push initiatives that foster economic development and sales tax revenue.

rothschild state of tucson 2014 spotlight Tucson Mayor Jonathan Rothschild focuses on economic development in his 2014 'State of the City' speech.
Andrea Kelly, AZPM

Listen:

Tucson Mayor Jonathan Rothschild focused on the economy in his third State of the City speech Wednesday.

Nearly every program he cited as an example of progress in his previous two years in office, and nearly every goal he outlined for 2014, were related to economic development. The topics were largely policies or practices that would attract businesses to Tucson:

- Education funding: Rothschild said Arizona needs to move up from the state's position as one of the lowest per-pupil funding states in the country. He urged Tucson business leaders to push state lawmakers to increase educational funding and divert their attention from bills that Rothschild said draw negative attention to Arizona.

"Starving our public schools of needed funds is as anti-business as SB 1070, or the most recent outrage, SB 1062. These policy decisions harm business, for these reasons I’m asking the business community: lead the way. Demand that K-12 public education funding become a top priority in our state,” he said.

- Military base preservation: Protecting the missions at Davis-Mothan Air Force Base, and the National Guard unit in Tucson, are critical, Rothschild said.

"I cannot be clearer than this: We will support the missions required to keep Davis-Monthan and the Air National Guard in our community. We will work to assure that Tucson remains an important part of our nation’s defense strategy. We value our military’s contribution to our country and to this community," he said.

- Infrastructure improvement: The city needs to work with the state and federal governments to ensure infrastructure improvements, he said. Additionally, the county should pursue a bond package that could help pay for some more local improvements, Rothschild said. Bonds are the government version of a loan, a financial advance paid back with interest over time. They are paid back through tax increases, and therefore must earn voter approval.

By posting comments, you agree to our
AZPM encourages comments, but comments that contain profanity, unrelated information, threats, libel, defamatory statements, obscenities, pornography or that violate the law are not allowed. Comments that promote commercial products or services are not allowed. Comments in violation of this policy will be removed. Continued posting of comments that violate this policy will result in the commenter being banned from the site.

By submitting your comments, you hereby give AZPM the right to post your comments and potentially use them in any other form of media operated by this institution.
AZPM is a service of the University of Arizona and our broadcast stations are licensed to the Arizona Board of Regents who hold the trademarks for Arizona Public Media and AZPM. We respectfully acknowledge the University of Arizona is on the land and territories of Indigenous peoples.
The University of Arizona