Over the course of Romney’s term, Massachusetts was 48th in the nation in manufacturing job growth, and lost more than 40,000 manufacturing jobs.
Massachusetts’ economic growth trailed the rest of the country every year Romney was governor.
Even as job growth lagged, Governor Romney vetoed more than $100 million in funding for economic development projects and the promotion of manufacturing—including programs for skills training and investments in high-tech manufacturing and entrepreneurs.
“Manufacturing payroll employment throughout the nation declined by nearly 1.1 million or 7% between 2002 and 2006, but in Massachusetts it declined by more than 14%, the third worst record in the country.”
—Andrew Sum and Joseph McLaughlin, Center for Labor Market Studies, Northeastern University“Romney’s recent move to slice $425 million from state spending will hamper the efforts of a program that has helped hundreds of small manufacturers compete, survive, and save thousands of jobs.”
[Boston Globe, 11/23/06]In 2006, Romney vetoed funding for a grant supporting “cutting-edge medical research and bio-manufacturing in the state.”
[Boston Business Journal, 8/14/06]When Romney took office, the unemployment rate in Massachusetts had been below the national average for nearly a decade. By the time he left office, unemployment in Massachusetts was higher than the national average for the first time since 1995.