As budget disputes drag on in Washington and Hartford, the economic recovery both nationally and in Connecticut appears imperiled and the threat of a double-dip recession again looms.

"It's becoming increasingly apparent that the strength of the economic recovery is now being adversely impacted by uncertainty at the federal and state level," said Don Klepper-Smith, chief economist and director of research at DataCore Partners in New Haven.

Mr. Klepper-Smith made the comment Thursday after the Connecticut Business and Industry Association (CBIA) released the troubling results of its latest survey of business owners.

An increasing number of those businesspeople, 28 percent, reported difficulty getting access to credit, indicating a lack of confidence in the sustainability of the recovery among lenders. Six of 10 said they have been unable to grow their businesses. Thirty-five percent reported reducing work force, and one in four said they cut compensation and benefits and were unable to increase inventories.

Nationally, the Wall Street Journal reports that companies are laying off workers at a level not seen in nearly a year. Unemployment remains stuck above 9 percent and applications for jobless benefits at more than 400,000 per week since April.

If not dealt with, a dangerous downward spiral - consumers unwilling to spend, businesses nervous and afraid to expand and hire, banks wary to lend - could tip the economy back into recession. Adding to the woes is a still-weak housing market.

In Connecticut, the endless negotiations with state labor unions must be brought to an end as quickly as possible, preferably avoiding the large-scale layoffs that would only further aggravate the economic situation. Businesses need time to assess the impact of the various tax increases and the assurance of state fiscal stability.

Nationally, Republicans and Democrats have to find a way to compromise on serious long-term debt reduction, but without short-term cuts so severe they are a further drag on the recovery. Republicans in Congress have added to the economic insecurity by threatening to let the nation slide into default if they do not get their way.

The biggest impediment to a deal is Republican resistance to any tax increase. In a recent editorial the fiscally conservative publication The Economist said it best about the refusal to consider raising taxes: "This is economically illiterate and disgracefully cynical."

The fiscal posturing has dragged on far too long and detracted attention from what Americans most care about - job creation.