Monday, August 27, 2007
Is the State Going to Get Tough on Economic Development?
Pending in state legislative House and Senate committees are two fairly similar bills that could change the economic development landscape in Pennsylvania. Titled “The Economic Development and Fiscal Accountability Act”, The general Assembly would direct a annual report on all economic development activities—who received the money, where it came from, and how much was awarded. Local government would also be required to file information on all property tax exemptions and abatements that have been awarded.
While we have seen previous audits and attempts on tracking economic development fall flat, we are encouraged that this legislation would issue fines for non-compliance, place thresholds on the cost effectiveness of economic development handouts (for instance, if the cost per job exceeded $35,000, the project would be a no go), and even a process for recapturing an award.
That’s a lot better than what exists now, which is basically non-existent. It might even end a bit of the zeal of officials to hand out gobs of money with dubious results.
While we have seen previous audits and attempts on tracking economic development fall flat, we are encouraged that this legislation would issue fines for non-compliance, place thresholds on the cost effectiveness of economic development handouts (for instance, if the cost per job exceeded $35,000, the project would be a no go), and even a process for recapturing an award.
That’s a lot better than what exists now, which is basically non-existent. It might even end a bit of the zeal of officials to hand out gobs of money with dubious results.
