Northwest Florida Rep.Ā Matt GaetzĀ announced his support of a proposal by Gov.Ā Rick ScottĀ to overhaul the state’s public-private business recruiting vehicle,Ā Enterprise Florida.
Scott is seeking to create a $250 million fund to help sustain Enterprise Florida, Inc., which uses revenues from the state and other sources to encourage out-of-state firms to create jobs in the state.
āIām proud to fully support the proposal to create the Florida Enterprise Fund and improve the economicĀ development process at Enterprise Florida,” said Gaetz in a statement Tuesday.
Funding for the endeavor has been a sticking point, particularly in the state Senate, where critics like Sen. Jack LatvalaĀ and Sen.Ā Nancy DetertĀ have cried foul amid a perception Enterprise FloridaĀ feels too entitled to state funds without adequate explanation of their plans and unspent funds from previous appropriations.
Gaetz is seeking to ascend to the Senate next year, with his father former Senate PresidentĀ Don GaetzĀ set to term out in deep-red SD 1, which takes in much of the western Florida Panhandle.
The Shalimar Republican cited past EFI successes in his announcement.
“Enterprise Florida has been integral to creating jobs in ourĀ community, such as Edge Aerodynamix, Inc. in Panama City, providing 120 new jobs, and in Pensacola theĀ Naval Federal Credit Union bringing 7,200 jobs, Singapore Technologies Aerospace Ltd, with 304 jobs andĀ DeepFlex, Inc. contributing 100 new jobs to the panhandle,” said Gaetz.
“These reforms will continue to diversify our localĀ economy, empower our small businesses, and create even more great jobs,ā concluded Gaetz.
