Governor Crist talks economy during town hall meeting

From the Governor’s Office:

Governor Charlie Crist recently joined state Representative Lake Ray for a town hall meeting in Jacksonville. The Governor took questions and listened to citizens voice their concerns about issues important to them. Governor Crist emphasized developing a world-class workforce, the environment, census participation and job creation.

“Florida families need to know that their voices are being heard,” said Governor Crist. “My number one priority right now is jobs for Floridians. Government alone cannot create the jobs needed by the millions of Floridians out of work, so we are committed to helping Florida businesses become job-creation engines. Government always has a responsibility to be more efficient and more accountable to the citizens it serves.”

During opening remarks, Governor Crist highlighted his priorities for the 2010 Legislative Session. He reiterated his proposal for $100 million in tax relief for families and businesses. These proposals include a reduction to the corporate income tax rate by one percent on the first million dollars of a corporation’s income and a 10-day Back-to-School Sales Tax Holiday. An additional priority, help for businesses by delaying the increase in unemployment taxes, was accomplished last week when the Governor signed House Bill 7033 into law on the first day of session. In addition, the Governor has recommended a $9.7-billion investment in economic development, which includes infrastructure, workforce development and incentives for small businesses.

Governor Crist also addressed his commitment to education and the environment. The Governor recently called for a formal partnership among state education and workforce development leaders and Florida’s business sector to develop a strategic plan to ensure Florida’s workforce is trained to meet the demands of a global, knowledge-based economy. Known as Florida’s Talent Supply Chain, the partners will work to ensure students can access educational opportunities and gain skills that will increase Florida’s economic competitiveness.

Governor Crist’s K-12 education recommendations for Fiscal Year 2010-11 include a 2.61-percent increase in per-student funding over the current year. This increase provides a $179 increase per student, for an average of $7,045 per student for the 2.6 million K-12 students expected during the 2010-11 school year.  If adopted, this per-student amount would be the second highest funding level ever for Florida’s students.

Governor Crist’s environmental recommendations include $50 million to revive Florida Forever and continue the preservation of Florida’s unique natural resources and wildlife. Since 1963, Florida has committed more than $7.5 billion to preserve and conserve roughly 3.8 million acres of land. However, the program funding was temporarily suspended last year due to economic challenges.

The Governor also encouraged attendees of the town hall to participate in the 2010 Sunshine Census. On March 15, 2010, census questionnaires will be mailed or delivered to every household throughout Florida. These short forms take only minutes to fill out, but will have an impact on Florida’s future for the next 10 years. In addition to determining the number of seats each state has in the U.S. House of Representatives, the U.S. Census affects the amount of federal funding received by states, counties and cities.

About the Census

Conducted every 10 years as required by the U.S. Constitution, the 2010 Census is a count of everyone living in the United States. Census data is used to determine Congressional seats to states, to choose offered community services, and to allocate more than $400 billion in federal funds to local, state and tribal governments annually.  The 2010 Census consists of 10 questions, taking about 10 minutes to complete and will be one of the shortest questionnaires to date. Confidentiality of respondents and the information they provide is protected by strict confidentiality laws.

The first nationwide census was taken in 1790 by the U.S. marshals on horseback and counted 3.9 million people. The first Florida census was taken in 1830 when Florida was still a territory and counted 34,730 people. The most recent census was taken in 2000 and counted more than 281 million people nationwide and approximately 15.9 million in Florida.

For more information, please visit www.SunshineCensus2010.com.

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Posted by Andrea Freygang on Mar 13 2010. Filed under Broward County, Local news, Tallahassee. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Both comments and pings are currently closed.