May 21, 2013
State Representative Gregory Haddad hailed passage of a bill through the House of Representatives that he has championed which creates a new kind of business in Connecticut that seeks to benefit society and the environment. The bill will now be sent to the Senate for action before the end of the legislative session on June 5.
“Social enterprise is a concept that we as a state should be supporting and I am proud of my colleagues for recognizing this and voting for the bill,” Rep. Haddad said. “We are sending the message that we want to support businesses that are giving back to their communities. This is a rapidly growing movement and we need to attract these entrepreneurs to Connecticut and keep them here.”
A benefit corporation, or b-corp, is a for-profit business organization operating under the same laws that govern traditional business corporations but whose corporate purpose must be to make a material positive impact on society and the environment, whose directors must consider certain interests in addition to the financial interest of their shareholders, and report on its overall social and environmental performance against an independent and transparent third-party standard each year.
“Benefit corporations are dedicated to pursuing a triple bottom line; profits, people and planet. They do not act solely for shareholder value or profit maximization,” Rep. Haddad said.
Representative Haddad serves Mansfield’s 54th Assembly District, is Vice Chair of the Higher Education Committee, and is a member, and former Vice Chair, of the Commerce Committee.