State Rep. Clay Ingram explained to Inweekly why he voted for HB 7005, which targets Visit Florida, Enterprise Florida and other business-development agencies.
“As chair of the House Appropriations Transportation and Tourism Subcommittee, I have had oversight of Enterprise Florida for past three years,” said Ingram, who is also president and CEO of the Greater Pensacola Chamber. “Every time we’ve tried to get them to make changes in their operations, we’ve gotten push back. It has been frustrating.”
He said one such change was for Enterprise Florida to switch its approximately $80-million in reserves into interest-bearing accounts.
Since there is no companion bill in the Florida Senate, Ingram isn’t sure what will happen if the full House passes the bill next month, but he hopes Enterprise Florida will begin to pay attention to House recommendations on how the agency can be more accountable and transparent.
Meanwhile, Gov. Rick Scott sent a tweet thanking the Pensacola chamber for supporting Enterprise Florida:
“Thank you @PcolaChamber for fighting for Florida jobs- see release in support of @EnterpriseFL & @VISITFLORIDA here: bit.ly/2lk3GOZ”