Florida takes chances with your tax dollars to lure jobs

By MICHAEL SASSO | The Tampa Tribune
Published: June 29, 2012 Updated: June 29, 2012 - 1:10 PM

TAMPA --

Companies across Florida collect millions of dollars up front to create jobs, then miss their marks ? some by a little, some by a lot.

In many cases, they balk at giving the public its money back.

They include Metlife in Tampa, Piper Aircraft in Vero Beach, and Redpine Healthcare Technologies in the Panhandle.

The grants in question come through the Quick Action Closing Fund, one of 13 job-creating incentive programs that Florida offers and the program that has awarded the most money in the last five years ? more than $200 million.

Governments have awarded incentives to companies for years to encourage them to hire, but historically, they demanded the companies create jobs and invest corporate dollars before getting a tax refund or credit.

This gave taxpayers some protection.

But the timing is changing. Competition for jobs is so fierce that state and local governments nationwide are choosing to turn over cash in advance.

Gray Swoope, chief of the economic development agency Enterprise Florida, argues that up-front incentives work. Companies need money at the beginning of an expansion more than they do later on, he said ? to buy land, equipment and train their workforce.

"It's becoming more of an effective tool as states move toward more closing funds than any other program," Swoope said in an interview.

It hasn't worked in Bay County, though, where the government is in court trying to get its money back. And while the recession no doubt has hurt companies' ability to create jobs, a Tampa Tribune review suggests more than 40 percent of companies have missed their job-creation and investment marks.

Ed Smith, county manager there, watched Redpine collect $750,000 up front from the state and county, move into town, then shut down within months.

"We had never done that before," Smith said, "and I would venture we won't do it again."

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Read more about Florida's gamble on jobs in a special report that begins Sunday in The Tampa Tribune.

Source: http://www2.tbo.com/news/business/2012/jun/29/florida-takes-chances-with-your-tax-dollars-to-lur-ar-421980/

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