Even the A.G. is pushing for job creation

Even the A.G. is pushing for job creation

SALEM — It’s no surprise given the state’s alarming employment trends that one can hardly throw a shoe these days without hitting a politician who claims to be creating jobs.

But the attorney general?

Apparently economic stimulus is also a priority for John Kroger, Oregon’s 16th attorney general. Kroger’s first public act after taking his oath to serve was to announce a plan to streamline the transfer of technology from the state’s universities to the private sector in the interest of building new companies and, you guessed it, creating jobs.

Kroger made his name bringing the high and mighty of Enron to justice and recently raised eyebrows when he selected no-compromise environmentalist Brent Foster as a staff enforcer. But his posture couldn’t have been more pro-business as he spoke to journalists at the 15th-floor offices of Tripwire in downtown Portland on his first full day on the job, joined by Oregon Business Association President Ryan Deckert, Oregon University System Chancellor George Pernsteiner, and executives from Tripwire and Intel.  

“I want to make sure that Oregon has a process in place that will enable us to compete with the best in the nation,” Kroger says.

Oregon’s legal process of technology transfer has been criticized as overly cumbersome for a technology sector where speed to market is vital. Kroger vows to model the new system on sleeker versions in use in Washington, Massachusetts and elsewhere. He hopes to have the improved system in place by March.

BEN JACKLET

Have an opinion? E-mail This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.