The state's leading business association released its 2016 legislative agenda Thursday, asking lawmakers for "no more first-in-the-nation workplace mandates until Connecticut is first in the nation in job growth."

The Connecticut Business & Industry Association, which represents about 10,000 enterprises statewide, was referring to the nation's first mandatory-sick-leave law that passed five years ago as well as pending legislation that would offer paid family and medical leaves and state-sponsored retirement plans.

In addition, lawmakers have passed minimum-wage increases, the most recent of which went into effect Jan. 1, that have made it more expensive to do business in Connecticut than in other states.

"Connecticut’s rush to be first in the nation to adopt new workplace mandates has resulted in our being one of the last to recover from the recession and in attracting new businesses," said the CBIA agenda, titled Connecticut's Turning Point. "We need many more jobs and businesses here, but we won’t achieve that until we lift from Connecticut employers the unique legal and regulatory barriers that businesses in other states don’t have to face."

Other priorities for the business group in the upcoming General Assembly session included cutting red tape, improving workforce skills and reducing regulatory burdens.

"Lawmakers must give businesses, small and large, the confidence to invest and grow here," CBIA president and chief executive Joe Brennan said in a statement.

The CBIA said restoring the state's business competitiveness should be the legislature's top priority.

The state must "respond to the challenges facing employers, build on recent progress, and end the economic uncertainty that creates doubt and hesitation among Connecticut’s job creators," the CBIA said.

Brennan acknowledged that Gov. Dannel P. Malloy had proposed a budget with "tough, necessary changes" that could help turn around a lagging economy that only recently has neared restoring all Connecticut jobs lost during the Great Recession.

"The governor’s five budget principles reflect the sentiments we're hearing from our member companies," Brennan said in a statement.

Other areas the CBIA wants addressed include:

— reforming state government to reduce costs and stabilize finances.

— leveling the business playing field by implementing standards and regulations similar to those in other states.

— reducing energy costs by increasing access to cleaner, more diverse and more efficient energy.

— eliminating hidden costs in health care.

— improving the state's transportation infrastructure.

"The time for small steps is over," Brennan said. “Lawmakers must come together to support real, long-term reforms so Connecticut can meet the competitive demands of a 21st century economy.”

l.howard@theday.com

Twitter: @KingstonLeeHow