06/28/2010 – Governor Crist Signs $175 Million Jobs Bill
June 28, 2010
On May 28, Governor Charlie Crist signed into law Senate Bill 1752, Jobs for Florida, which invests more than $175 million in a wide range of job creation and economic development incentives. “The Florida Jobs Bill will improve the long-term quality of life for every Floridian by providing high-wage jobs and helping diversify our economy,” Governor Crist said.
Senator Don Gaetz, chairman of the Senate Select Committee on the Economy, praised the legislation’s approach to job creation. “Government doesn’t create jobs. It only creates the conditions that make jobs more or less likely,” Senator Gaetz said. “This package of incentives actually loosens government’s grip on the private sector and gives companies solid reasons to stay in Florida, expand in Florida, and come to Florida.”
The bill creates a corporate tax credit of $1,000 per worker for qualified businesses that hire Floridians who have been unemployed for at least 30 days. To qualify, the worker must remain employed at the business for at least 12 months. It also makes the following enhancements to the current Qualified Target Industry (QTI) program:
•Grants some call centers QTI access
•Creates a $1,000-per-job tax incentive for businesses in counties that provide a 50-50 match to the state
•Creates a $2,000-per-job tax incentive for designated “high impact industries” that create and retain full-time, high-paying jobs
•Creates a $2,000-per-job tax incentive for businesses that increases the value or tonnage of their exports by 10 percent through the state’s 14 seaports
The legislation also requires contractors working on state-funded construction projects to give hiring preference to Florida residents.
“We have gone far past the time when Florida could simply wait at the welcome center with a free glass of orange juice and a real estate map,” Senator Gaetz said. “As we work our way out of this recession, we must build a wider and deeper economy. That, in turn, will require investing in job creation and removing government barriers to useful, effective economic activity. The way we fund schools and health care and roads and public safety is by helping businesses keep and create jobs.”
Reaction. Jobs for Florida “is exactly the kind of action we need from our leaders right now,” said Barney Bishop III, president and CEO of Associated Industries of Florida. “With nearly 12 out of every 100 Floridians unemployed, our state’s focus needs to be on finding a way to getting a paycheck back in these folks’ hands and doing all we can to help the employers that will put them back to work.”
Chris Hart, director of the Florida Office of Trade and Economic Development, called the legislation “visionary,” saying that it “provides the right mix of economic development incentive tools specifically designed to meet the unique needs of Florida’s existing economy and industry base, as well as the promise that exists for Florida’s workforce and entrepreneurs in today’s global economy and emerging industries of tomorrow.”
