Area leaders hope state economic bill will make the cut

BYLINE: Tim Barker St. Louis Post-Dispatch

Saying it offers more good than bad, regional economic development leaders on Monday expressed support for a maligned piece of legislation sitting on the governor's desk.

The bill, known as HB327, is a wide-ranging economic package worth $100 million in tax credits aimed at stimulating job growth, venture capital and development of blighted areas. But it also deals with an odd mix of issues, including ticket scalping, beef-cow subsidies and biodiesel tax credits.

It's been criticized by legislators and lobbyists as excessive and unruly. Promises to fix it during the last week of the legislative session went unfulfilled. And now everyone is waiting to see whether the governor will sign the bill into law or veto it and call a special session on economic development.

Scott Zajac, managing director for Advantage Capital Partners in Clayton, hopes it will be the former. "While there are some unusual items in it, it's the best economic development bill we've had in a half a decade,'' said Zajac, whose firm leverages federal tax credits to invest in low-income areas.

The bill earmarks $15 million for tax credits that could attract nearly $200 million in private capital to support new and growing businesses in low-income areas, he said.

Greg Prestemon, president of the St. Charles County Economic Development Center, likes a provision offering tax breaks to developers assembling large tracts - at least 75 acres - for redevelopment in blighted areas. Without it, he said larger projects can be daunting.

"They are doing everything piecemeal. And it's hard to make the numbers work,'' Prestemon said.

Perhaps the biggest component of the legislation - and the one that creates the most angst when talk turns to special sessions - is its expansion of the state's Quality Jobs program, which offers incentives for companies creating higher-than-average paying jobs. The $12 million annual cap is essentially exhausted but is in line for an $18 million infusion.

Any delays in funding that program could have significant implications in the region's efforts to attract new projects. The St. Louis Regional Chamber & Growth Association says it has 60 active prospects, five of which represent more than 4,000 new jobs. And some of those firms are ready to start talking specifics, said Richard Fleming, the group's president and chief executive.

"You don't want to sit down with a company and say, 'We think we might be able to give you these incentives,'?...'' Fleming said.

Supporters worry that any attempt to overhaul this legislature's economic development offering could be disastrous in terms of the state's ability to compete for jobs and dollars. In a worst-case scenario, it could be a repeat of last year, when legislators failed to enact a development plan, said Jim Murphy, a former chairman of the Regional Business Council.

"We feel that significantly hurt the state,'' Murphy said. "There is no question that we are behind.''