Daily Record Financial News &
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2017
Vol. 104, No. 076 • oNe SectioN
35¢ www.jaxdailyrecord.com
Incentives necessary ‘to compete’
Lawmaker says there are better ways to attract businesses
While legislators in Tallahassee ponder whether to repeal much of the state’s incentive-based economic development and tourism promotion initiatives, local executives in those fields are worried that one day they might only have a knife to take to a gun fight. State Rep. Paul Renner, R-Palm Coast, said the move to restructure Florida’s business and tourism recruitment efforts is based
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Wheel of Fortune features Firehouse
Jacksonville-based Firehouse Subs was spinning around the “Wheel of Fortune” television game show last week. And on Friday night, a contestant’s spin landed on the Firehouse Subs tag and he won a $1,000 Visa gift card, courtesy of the company. Senior Public Relations Manager Liz Anderson said by email she is an avid fan of the show and approached the company’s PR team at The Zimmerman Agency about negotiating a promotional opportunity. The first Firehouse Subs promotion was a gift tag in November that aired during Veterans Week, tying into the chain’s first responder focus. A contestant won a $1,000 gift card then, too. Anderson said Firehouse Subs was informed about two weeks ago the gift tag would be featured last week, during the show’s Great American Cities theme week celebrating San Diego. “The agency team informed us that it’s rare a brand is featured more than once during the promotional calendar year, so we were excited,” Anderson said. Host Pat Sajak didn’t dwell on Firehouse when the contestant landing on the restaurant’s tag and won the prize. “They are required to mention us as a sponsor, but nothing more,” Anderson said. But others have responded. “It’s exciting to hear franchisees, friends and Firehouse fans comment on seeing Firehouse Subs on the Wheel,” she said. “Wheel of Fortune” airs to more than 30 million viewers and is considered America’s most popular game show, said Brittany Mirvil with The Zimmerman Agency. She said it ranks as the longest-running syndicated game show in the United States with more than 6,000 episodes in the last three decades. It isn’t Firehouse Subs’ first national TV appearance. Mirvil said Firehouse Subs appeared on “Let’s Make a Deal” twice in 2016 and on MATHIS
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on ensuring maximum return on investment and fairness. He is a member of the House Careers & Competition Subcommittee that filed HB 7005. House leaders on Monday filed a stand-alone bill for Visit Florida, separating it from the Enterprise Florida discussion. “It’s ultimately a question of the best way to grow jobs,” Renner said. “And the idea of taking taxpayers’ money and giving it to mostly healthy companies is unfair to small businesses.”
The original version would have eliminated Enterprise Florida and its tax incentive programs designed to make the state more attractive than others for establishment of new business and expansion of existing businesses. It also would have abolished Visit Florida, the state’s publicprivate tourism marketing division. The legislation had been amended to reduce Visit Florida’s funding from $76 million this year to $25 million in 2017-
18. Enterprise Florida and the tax rebate incentive programs still would be terminated. Renner said eliminating the incentive programs administered by Enterprise Florida could eventually free up as much as $200 million a year that could be used to improve education, public safety and roads. That, he said, could be a better way to attract new business than tax rebates. INCENTIVES CONTINUED ON PAGE 3
Mayor meets with future leaders from Lee High School
Photo courtesy of Wes Lester / City of Jacksonville
By Max Marbut Staff Writer
Mayor Lenny Curry had lunch with Robert E. Lee High School students who are members of the EVAC program. They talked about leadership, crime and a little football. Above, Chris Burgess asked Curry how many Jacksonville Jaguars games he has attended. The mayor’s answer: “I haven’t missed a home game in a long time.” The program’s name is cave spelled backward, based on Plato’s “Allegory of the Cave,” which is about the importance of education. See more photos on Page 4.
Helping ex-offenders find a job
Council bill would amend rules on city contracts
By Max Marbut Staff Writer
Two weeks ago, City Council approved a human rights ordinance that makes it against the law to discriminate against LGBT people in employment, housing and public accommodations. The six weeks of discussion about the issue before the vote has led council member Garrett Dennis to tackle another form of employment discrimination. He’s sponsoring a bill (2017-35) requiring companies that get a city contract worth $200,000 or more to cooperate with the city to secure employment for exoffenders that were convicted, served their
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sentence and are in a re-entry program. The bill describes rehabilitation of exoffenders as “an essential component in a community fight against criminal activity.” It goes on to state that fair-paying jobs help Dennis restore the economic stability of ex-offenders and reduces recidivism. “In light of the HRO, this is tearing down the vestiges of discrimination,” Dennis said. “We need to make sure all of our citizens have opportunities.”
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The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office operates a re-entry center that works closely with private nonprofits that have established programs to help people get back into society after they are released from prison. The organizations provide services such as counseling, case management, job placement and in some cases, transitional housing. The ordinance would amend the procurement regulations to require companies with the contracts to maintain communication with ex-offender job placement agencies, provide them with job descriptions when they need more workers and report
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