In a new and very blunt television commercial, Governor Rick Scott wants to make one thing clear.
He is against the bill making its way through the state legislature that would make deep cuts to Visit Florida and eliminate Enterprise Florida.
“If the politicians in Tallahassee say they don’t want to market our state and we lose tourists then we lose jobs,” says Scott in the commercial. “If we lost two percent of the jobs in tourism, that’s 28 thousand jobs.”
Visit Florida markets the state and draws in tourists through ad campaigns.
Enterprise Florida offers incentives to convince companies to move to Florida.
Supporters of the bill say the programs waste tax money. However, opponents argue they create and sustain jobs.
Tuesday, the Palm Beach County Commission were scheduled to vote on a resolution, siding with Governor Scott in his fight to save the two tourism agencies.
“In my district alone we had a half million dollars in a grant from Visit Florida to support the equestrian industry,” said Commissioner McKinlay. “That helps them market nationally and internationally.”
Our local tourism agency, Discover the Palm Beaches believes if both agencies go away there would be a multi-billion dollar impact to our local economy.
“It’s important for us to continue to market what we have to offer and bring those tourists here to what we consider the best part of Florida,” said Ashley Svarney with Discover the Palm Beaches.
