For the past two years Utah has been honored as the “Best Managed State” and this year, that distinction took on an even more significant meaning.

For 45 days from late January to mid-March, members of the State House of Representatives and the State Senate go about the people’s business working to balance the budget and craft legislation aimed at enhancing our quality of life.

This year, State Legislators faced the challenge of balancing the budget while facing a significant shortfall in revenue.

They not only balanced the budget, they did so without increasing sales, property or income tax.

Because of the good judgment of our governor and legislators—both past and present—we were armed with a significant Rainy Day Fund. When the Rainy Day arrived—the legislature wisely turned the Rainy Day Fund from a safety net to a strategic asset, putting Utah in an enviable position for the future.

The fury of the legislative session has ended but I would encourage you to make that phone call to your representative and your senator to thank them for their outstanding service to our state. It’s always nice to have someone congratulate you on a job well done and our State Legislature deserves our thanks for their commitment to our community.

The Legislature also passed landmark ethics reform to further ensure high standards of conduct.

During the session, the Salt Lake Chamber monitored over 200 bills and spent hundreds of hours to ensure legislation benefitted business and strengthened our economy.

We worked to drive down the cost of health care, to protect business from tax increases that would have hindered our recovery and to position Utah to benefit from our natural resources.

One of our main issues was funding for public and higher education. Before the session even began, back in November, we put forth a plan whereby the state could balance the budget without making cuts to our commitment to a first-class workforce. I’m happy to report education funding was made a priority by the Legislature.

Businesses are attracted to our state by our young and well-educated workforce. That workforce also supplies workers for home-grown businesses. The strength of our education system is directly related to the strength of our economy.

We’re committed to working with our elected officials to ensure the business climate remains friendly and that our economy grows stronger.

Thanks to our engaged business community and dedicated elected officials, we’re in a position, as was noted by Forbes magazine, to lead the nation out of the recession.