Finegold confident about economy, talks need to be held to sustain industry | Merrimack Valley

ANDOVER — State Sen. Barry Finegold, D-Andover, says the economy is doing well.

Finegold spoke about the economy, local industry and how the need for housing is directly related to jobs at a Merrimack Valley Chamber of Commerce event at the Andover Inn Friday morning.

He said millions of dollars have been pumped into the state in recent years, so recent declines in state revenue are expected.

“We are absolutely not in a recession, but in a realignment,” Finegold said. “We’re just getting back to our normal spending levels.”

As a state senator for the Second Essex and Middlesex District, Finegold represents Amesbury, parts of Haverhill, Andover, Merrimac, parts of North Andover, Tewksbury and Wilmington.

He said the vast majority of the state budget goes to health care and education.

“And 100% of it is recycled,” Finegold said. “That means money is flowing back into the economy.”

He also drew attention to sectors in which the state is doing well. Finegold said both the state's health care system and higher education are draws.

He also brought up the defense industry, particularly Raytheon, which has a facility in Andover and is headquartered in Waltham, adding that the defense industry giant has billions of dollars in backlog orders.

“Whether we like it or not, it is a volatile time in this world and to their credit Raytheon makes the Patriot missile that is used around the world,” he said.

However, Finegold said Massachusetts still has to compete with states that spend a lot of money on economic development. He said the state recognized the growth in biotechnology in 2010 and created incentives for the growth of this industry; A step that was worth it.

Last year, Andover voters approved a tax incentive that brought Flagship Pioneering, a “business incubation firm” responsible for more than 100 companies, including Moderna, to the city. The flagship joins companies like Pfizer in Andover.

Finegold said the goal now is to keep them here.

He said business leaders have repeatedly told him that the best way to create more jobs is through more housing, but he said the state can't get away from that with its resources.

Finegold said the state is about 200,000 housing units short. He said building that number of units would cost about $120 billion.

He said the way forward is to make construction easier.

“I remain optimistic and very optimistic about the future,” Finegold said. “Everyone contributes something in their own way.”