Despite mounting concerns of a national economic downturn, the Beehive state is perceived as among those few states with sound underlying fundamentals -- a key reason why many companies want to relocate here and some existing large employers in Utah are still looking to expand, said Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. at the second annual Utah economic summit on Thursday.

"Nationally, we're hearing about the housing crash, subprime loan problems, credit markets freezing up, the collapse of [mortgage bond underwriter] Bear Stearns, all seeming to leave us on the doorsteps of a recession," Huntsman said. "These recent events have shocked Wall Street into a state of deep conservatism. Instead of spending, firms are now hoarding cash. Lenders are demanding money back and shutting down on new loans going out."

"Bubbles lead to busts, which in turn lead to panic, which in turn lead to a deep economic crisis," he said. "We may be cruising at 30,000 feet and experiencing wind shear, but we musn't allow the nation's thinking to cloud our thinking in Utah."

While the state's job growth may be slowing, Utah remains the second-highest in the nation for employment growth after Wyoming and continues to face a shortage of skilled labor, Huntsman said. "Without a doubt, we have critical workforce needs. And we need to improve the way the state conducts workforce development and technical training."

Utah's young, educated and accessible workforce continues to be highly sought by companies such as Barnes Aerospace of Windsor, Conn., Charlotte Pipe of Cedar City and Disney Interactive Studios in Los Angeles -- all of which are adding hundreds of jobs in Utah in the coming months and years, Huntsman said.

Disney Interactive, which acquired Avalanche Software in Salt Lake City in 1996, plans to add more than 500 high-paying jobs over the next 10 years to an existing Utah work force of 150 to create video games based on intellectual property that Disney has developed. To that end, the Governor's Office of Economic Development Board approved a $5.25 million tax-rebate in February for the company.

"Barnes Aerospace is expanding its manufacturing footprint in Ogden by 50 percent and adding hundreds of workers here, while Charlotte Pipe, a plastics pipe maker is opening a 148,000-square-foot production plant in Cedar City this month," Huntsman said. An $85 million tax-rebate incentive put out by the Governor's Office also helped land Cincinnati-based Proctor & Gamble, which is breaking ground on a 1,000-worker production plant in unincorporated Box Elder County later this month.

At Thursday's event, Dave Carlebach, managing director of Goldman Sachs in Salt Lake City, said the New York investment firm chose to locate an office in Utah because of its relatively low business costs and because of the "integrity and earnestness" of its work force. Today, the company has 350 workers in Utah.

Another speaker, Ron Dittemore, president of ATK Launch Systems in Brigham City, cited the state's planned expansion of Interstate-15 and the introduction of commuter rail to Ogden, Brigham City and Box Elder County as critical factors helping the company's recruitment efforts. ATK, a maker of aerospace components, has 6,000 workers, many of whom are highly-paid engineers, in Salt Lake City.

Despite the economic downturn, the state board continues to receive inquiries from companies and individuals wanting to relocate to Utah because it is still viewed as one of the safest places to invest, said Jason Perry, executive director of the Governor's Office. Several high-tech data centers are looking at relocating in Utah County in the coming year, and these businesses will likely bring high-paying jobs to the area, he said.

"Despite the housing slump, our home prices here are still cheaper compared to states like California. And we didn't hinge our economic success on one or two industries like in Michigan, where the economy is hinged for the most part on the auto industry now undergoing a downturn," Perry said.

With rural projects accounting for 60 percent of the state's economic development, the state is also launching what it called a rural fast track program to provide tax incentives to local businesses wanting to expand in small rural communities in Utah -- a sector that has long been neglected, Huntsman said.

To maintain the state's competitive edge, he stressed a need to increase educational opportunities for students and invest in general education spending to attract more teachers to cultivate the next generation of business and government talent. Reforming the health care system, which Huntsman called "economically unsustainable," was also high on his agenda. "Health care costs are killing many small businesses in our state. We need health care policies that are more accessible, affordable and portable," he said.

On Wednesday, Huntsman signed HB133, which creates a legislative task force to develop a plan by the end of November to rein in health care costs, make it more affordable and boost access to insurance. The plan may take several years to implement.