Jobs are key for Scott team
Gov. Rick Scott speaks at the Florida Republican Party state convention on Saturday, Jan. 14, at Walt Disney World in Lake Buena Vista, Fla., as state GOP Chairman Lenny Curry of Jacksonville listens. The governor said, "We can't afford another four years of Barack Obama." He also said, "It's ours to lose," with Florida's 29 electoral votes probably deciding who wins in November. (AP Photo)
Gov. Rick Scott called for another round of tax cuts, deregulation and government downsizing, an economic blueprint focused on the long term that top lawmakers are following in the session.
Scott and legislative leaders say the modest, hands-off approach helped Florida add 120,000 jobs last year by providing a stable business environment.
But critics say any job growth stemmed from national trends and that slashing state programs to save money is hampering a more robust recovery.
"Don't paint a rosy picture that's not there," said Sen. Thad Altman, R-Viera, questioning Scott's touting of the jobs picture, which includes a 10 percent unemployment rate, fifth-highest in the nation. "We haven't even begun to really solve our jobless problem.
"Simply being anti-government, that's not going to employ people," Altman added.
Such views largely have been drowned out in the Republican-majority Legislature in recent years as top lawmakers repeatedly pushed a hard line on government spending. Five years into the worst economic conditions since the Great Depression, debate over economic recovery has centered around a narrow spectrum of limited government proposals. Lawmakers have settled into a cycle of budget cutting, arguing that holding down taxes will prime the state for recovery.
Scott wants $230 million in incentives to lure new businesses, but legislative leaders are unlikely to set that much aside after providing less than one-third of the $300 million Scott requested for the program last year.
Few other tangible job creation proposals are up for consideration in the Capitol this year, and some proposals are likely to result in big short-term job losses as lawmakers again look to slash the state budget.
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In a survey of 3000 college students and young professionals by Cisco Systems, a third said the Internet is as important to them as air, water, food and shelter. Forty percent would choose a lower-paying job with more social-media freedom over a
Schools, water management districts and other agencies that lost state funding cut thousands more positions. Hospitals lost $500 million in Medicaid payments. Government workers who kept their jobs had less money to spend after lawmakers cut salaries
