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FLORIDA: Bush Urges Lawmakers To Approve Million For New Industries Posted on Mon, Oct. 20, 2003 In an unprecedented question-and-answer sales pitch to lawmakers who seemed already sold on his $310 million biotech deal, Gov. Jeb Bush said today Florida has nothing to lose - and a worldwide reputation for scientific advancement to gain - in this week's special legislative session. "We are planning for massive success," said Bush, standing at the lectern of the House chamber during an informal two- hour joint meeting. "If there is massive failure, we can stop the investment." The centerpiece of the five-day special session is Bush's plan to create a laboratory and administration complex for Scripps Research Institute, which has chosen a Palm Beach County site to expand its LaJolla, Calif.-based work on new drugs and treatments for Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases, AIDS, multiple sclerosis, several types of cancer, and several other diseases. Bush has also proposed a $190 million "mega-fund" to provide start-up money and other incentives for new industries. For the full story, see tomorrow's edition of the Tallahassee Democrat and Tallahassee Democrat Online. * * * Bush assures lawmakers Governor fields questions about Scripps project By Bill Cotterell, Diane Hirth and Nancy Cook Lauer DEMOCRAT CAPITOL BUREAU Posted on Tue, Oct. 21, 2003 In an unprecedented question-and-answer sales pitch to lawmakers who seemed already sold on his $310 million biotech deal, Gov. Jeb Bush said Monday that Florida has nothing to lose - and a worldwide reputation for scientific advancement to gain - in this week's special legislative session. "We are planning for massive success," said Bush, standing at the lectern of the House chamber during an informal two- hour joint meeting. "If there is massive failure, we can stop the investment." The centerpiece of the five-day special session is Bush's plan to create a laboratory and administration complex for the Scripps Research Institute. The institute has chosen a Palm Beach County site to expand its La Jolla, Calif.-based work on new drugs and treatments for a range of medical conditions including Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases, AIDS and multiple sclerosis. While the Scripps deal appears headed for easy approval, legislative debate is expected to focus on a Bush proposal to create a $190 million "mega-fund" to provide start-up money and other incentives for new industries. Senate President Jim King, R-Jacksonville, and Senate Majority Leader Dennis Jones, R-Seminole, have cautioned members not to get dazzled by the promise of scientific miracles and futuristic research. Rather than letting Bush, King and House Speaker Johnnie Byrd, R-Plant City, dispense grants from the mega-fund, Jones said, the Senate wants an expanded board - possibly three appointees by each leader - to help assure the money isn't used to reward political friends. Enterprise Florida, the Orlando-based consortium that handles economic development for the state, outlined several projects that could benefit from the mega-fund. A Franklin County project - so secret that it's code-named "Raven" - would bring 425 new jobs, with an average annual salary of $21,000, to the rural county within three years. Other projects on the Enterprise Florida list would create more than 10,000 new jobs with average annual salaries ranging from $40,000 to $92,000. The cumulative impact, said Enterprise Florida President and CEO Darrell Kelley, would be to create 53,521 jobs, boost Florida payrolls by $1.35 billion each year and add $121.4 million annually to state and local government revenues. "The special session, in my mind, means Florida is getting serious about economic diversification," Kelley said. "Creating better-paying jobs creates a better future for all Floridians." Florida State University, meanwhile, is hoping for $10 million from the mega-fund to pay for an upgrade at the National High Magnetic Field Laboratory in Tallahassee. The Mag Lab is operated by a consortium of FSU, the University of Florida and Los Alamos National Laboratory. Democrats concerned The Palm Beach County Commission has already approved up to $200 million to acquire hundreds of acres and build facilities for Scripps, which is not putting any of its own money into the expansion. Although Bush said Scripps will forever change Florida the way NASA and Disney did, the governor stressed that it is not a corporate deal like those ventures - with state and local government setting a fixed return on tax concessions made or dollars invested. Sen. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Pembroke Pines, said many Democrats are concerned that Scripps was "investing only intellectual capital" in Florida. "I don' think we've ever done an economic-development deal with a research institute," she said. "It's not there to make money; it's there to make discoveries. I just respectfully disagree with you, that there needs to be an equity investment by Scripps." Bush expects companies to spring up around Scripps, as many did around Disney and NASA. Aside from the life-saving potential of new drugs and clinical procedures, Scripps is projected to produce $1.6 billion in economic activity and 6,500 jobs over 15 years. Dr. Richard Lerner, president of the institute, told legislators "we are entering a perfect storm in science." He said a doubling of National Institutes of Health research funding to $27 billion comes at a time when the relatively new field of biotechnology is just opening, with drug companies and universities looking for new ways to work together in research. State Reps. Loranne Ausley and Curtis Richardson, both Democrats representing Tallahassee, said Bush did a good job of answering questions but that lawmakers need to be wary of giving away that kind of money. Richardson said spreading $312 million among Florida universities would also produce jobs and research advances. Ausley said "it's not clear what arrangement is being made for patent and trademark royalties or payments for things produced in Florida." She said returns would be "capped" at $155 million - half the state's investment - under the Bush plan. "On the face of it, it sounds like an amazing project for the state," Ausley said. "But it's irresponsible, in my mind, if we go forward without answers to a lot of questions." ON THE AGENDA Gov. Jeb Bush on Monday expanded the call of the special session, allowing lawmakers to: Adopt district boundaries for three House seats in South Florida. The districts of Reps. Dudley Goodlette, R-Naples, David River, R-Miami, and Mike Davis, R-Naples, had been provisionally approved by the U.S. Department of Justice for 2002, and the pending legislation would make their boundaries permanent. Consider bills smoothing licensing for engineers in aerospace trades; transferring $30.1 million in an unclaimed Lotto jackpot to the community college and university matching-grant funds; and exempting certain aspects of the Scripps Research Institute deal now under consideration from state open records law. Bill would put dollars into what its sponsor describes as the "real engines of economic development." Contact political editor Bill Cotterell at (850) 222-6729 or [log in to unmask] SOURCE: The Tallahassee Democrat http://www.tallahassee.com/mld/democrat/news/local/7062984.htm * * * ---------------------------------------------------------------------- To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: mailto:[log in to unmask] In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn