Costs of Economic Development

What are the costs of having an economic development program in Batesville? What will we be spending the tax dollars on, and how do you determine the amount that you spend? These are two very important questions, and ones that are the most common from people who want to know more about a proposed tax. The last thing I want my tax dollars doing is being spent on something that will not be of benefit to both myself and other citizens. Government as a whole has over time taken tax dollars and spent them on things that have not benefited tax payers, and in fact, have benefited the governmental entity, and in turn, have benefited no one. What is different about this effort is that your tax dollars are going to be spent on things that will positively effect jobs. Period. The group of people that have committed to being on the initial board of the non-profit group that will make the recommendations to the Quorum Court are people that understand business, they understand what it means to do business well, and they will apply their experience to this process.

What makes that important is that too often we may expect our governmental agencies to make business decisions when they are not necessarily geared to do so. That is no slight to any of our governing bodies, but they specialize in ordinances, legislation, protection, and services. Think about it this way; if government existed to make a profit, something would be terribly wrong with that picture! Enter in this group of business people who understand what it will take to grow business. They understand, based on their industry segment or service sector what success means, and what we need in our community. We have purposely worked to get people from all across Independence County from our various employment areas that understand this. It’s the balance between government and business that we need. The two must work together to be successful, and if they don’t, we will be successful in doing nothing.

The cost of economic development varies, but its important to realize that we have to prioritize these monies to what our needs are. Right now, its important that we assist local companies that have expansion projects or needs for retraining. Currently, we have some employers of all sizes that are doing well and are expanding and will be adding jobs to our local economy. Success in economic development requires planning, and not just for the addition of jobs, but the kinds of jobs. We have a very diverse local economy that we need to have someone with experience in doing this in other communities come in and help lay a vision with this board to determine what our strengths are and what we will need to be doing to be competitive and retain, recruit, and enhance the jobs in our area. We will not sit idly by and let people come to us looking for assistance in their expansion efforts, in their efforts to bring a new business to our area, or looking for some training assistance. We will seek those out, and will solicit from the community the needs of our employers so we can utilize these funds in a responsible manner.

The price that we pay for this kind of effort is priceless in that the steps we are taking to take care of ourselves will pay off in the long term. The money that we will be offering companies with this tax goes a long way in their minds in that we have money that will help them in either the retention efforts or their expansion. But once we all begin to work together on this effort and we all know that we are taking steps forward to secure our future that is an investment in this community that no company can ever make, no person can ever contribute to, because it is larger than that. An effort like this is our county coming together through a collective effort that we all say without hesitation we are going to do something about our future, and we are going to start now. The reality is the communities who have the resources to market themselves, to put incentives on the table along with the state, will be in the game and will vie for jobs that are out there. Even in these challenging times, there are companies looking at growing.

On December 9^th, everyone in this County will have the opportunity to voice their opinion on this matter and cast their vote. As a community I urge you to, as one group of citizens, vote yes for a priceless investment in our collective future, and one that will reap dividends for us, our children, and our grandchildren.

What Economic Development Is and Does

Over the next four articles, I am going to outline what I believe economic development will look like going forward, and how this relates to the vote on December 9^th for an economic development tax.  I want to do this so that the readers of this article will hopefully better understand what I do here at the Chamber, and what I envision we will be able to do with this tax.  As it goes with any vote that increases a tax on the citizens and goes to a governmental agency, there is automatic questions that arise, and justifiably so.  I am that way, and believe that as citizens we should question our government in ways that we don’t always agree.  That is our right as American citizens and anything other than that would be disappointing to me. 

Economic Development is as broad as it is wide.  It is an all encompassing phrase that at times can be hard to understand.  It’s a phrase that a person can twist to fit to what they think it should be, or what they think it should be for.  As a rule for my position and what I do here, economic development is an effort I undertake to either retain, enhance, or create jobs for the people of Independence County.  If what I do fulfills any of those three criteria, I believe I am doing my job.  As with any job, that I have or that you have, you need tools to do your job.  I have talked previously about incentives, and the need for them in our competitive day and time.  I wont talk too much about that in this space here, but I will say they are an important part of what I do.  More importantly, and what comes before incentives are ever offered, is making sure that those outside of Arkansas are aware of us, that we exist, and what the characteristics of our community are.  The core characteristics of our community will make us competitive almost immediately once they are brought out in the open and shown to site consultants, and others who could be interested.  But there is a literal cost in producing those materials, to send those out, and to create those materials.  We will have to market ourselves to the outside community so they know we exist, and that we can deliver what they are looking for. 

Another aspect that is important that we as a community understand as well as the outside is what our strengths are as a county.  I will advocate for a trusted and experienced group to come in and help us formulate a long term strategy to recruit companies to our area.  I have an idea of what would be great types of industry to recruit to our area.  But, I would be doing a disservice to you, the taxpayer, if I spent time and your money on things that would end up not being a good fit for us, or that we don’t have the resources to attract.  We have to know what we can attract, what is a good fit for us, and what we need to plan for.  In 1986, Jonesboro did just this exact thing.  They brought in a firm who told them about the industry they could attract, and what they needed to do to ensure that.  I will advocate we do the same so that we don’t waste one taxpayers dime on efforts that do not provide a solid return on their sacrifice.

Economic Development is also helping companies around the county as they work to increase their workforce, or make improvements that will aid in them remaining competitive and as a result staying in business.  Since the Copeland announcement, I have had several calls from businesses about monies available to help them in their expansions.  I have told them about this effort, and they are in support of it as well, and understand how it can help them.  The board that will work with the economic developer will make the suggestions to the quorum court about projects just like this, and we will be actively seeking out companies to help, to invest  your dollars in to, to help them create new jobs, help them keep jobs here, or help them in other ways.

The other reality about economic development is looking to the future, while dealing with current issues.  It would be a disservice to the taxpayers if these leaders did not look to the future and think of what needs will be.  These funds can be used to issue bonds for purposes related to economic development, and that can include new road infrastructure, industrial park, or other improvements for the community to make it competitive long term.  This is a key part of what it will take to be competitive, and to enhance our community for the good of the taxpayers.  All of these things will be done will transparency and reporting to the public.  Any taxpayer of Independence County will be able to view records about our efforts, minutes of meetings, and have an understanding of what is going on with their money.  They will be able to view financial records, and know what their money is being spent on.

Its important to understand what economic development is, what it does, and I hope in today’s article I have outlined the key areas of this proposal.  Please contact me if you have questions about this or any other article on this subject.

THE REAL "INCONVENIENT TRUTH"

The major issue in tomorrow’s Presidential election is not the economy, as many political pundits would have you believe. Nor is it illegal aliens, though that is certainly an issue begging for resolution. There is really only one issue that every Christian American voter must weigh; the issue of abortion.

The Bible, I and II Kings and I and II Chronicles, often mentions an Israelite king commonly referred to as "Jeroboam, son of Nebat, who caused all Israel to sin". What did this evil ruler do that forever labeled him as the king that "caused all Israel to sin"? He sacrificed children to the god Molech, which was an abomination to the Sovereign Lord, the Almighty God. In Ezekiel 20:30-36, the Sovereign Lord says that when God’s people “sacrifice their sons in the fire”, the people defile themselves, and that He will execute judgment on the nation, as He judged the fathers in the desert of the land of Egypt.”

The abortion of unborn, innocent children is murder, an abomination, and a stench in the nostril of the Lord. Since the Roe vs. Wade decision 1n 1973, more than 45,000,000 babies have been killed in this country. That’s an average of 1.28 million a year, 107,000 a month, 3,500 a day, 60 an hour, one every minute of every day! How can anyone think that our Heavenly Father will ignore such an atrocity?

We have lost more Americans to abortion, than the combined total of Americans that have died in the 12 wars from the Revolutionary War to the current Iraq/Afghanistan conflict. 64 times as many! One in every 4 deaths in America is due to abortion.

The abortion problem spans every ethnic group. 41% of Whites have aborted one or more babies, as have 34% of Blacks, 17% of Hispanics and 6% of Asians.

It gets worse. 37.4% of those who had an abortion are Protestants who claim Christ as their savior. 31.3% are Catholics who also claim Christ as their savior.

The proponents of Pro-Choice are quick to say that many abortions are performed because of health issue with the mother or baby, or because the mother was a victim of rape or incest. That is a lie. Only 1% of all abortions were performed because the mother was a victim of rape or incest. Only 6% of all abortions were performed because of health issue with the mother or baby. Fully 93% of all abortions were performed because it was “inconvenient” to have a baby. That’s the Real “Inconvenient Truth”. For 35 years this nation has been murdering it’s unwanted children. God cannot be pleased with us.

This year’s election boils down to a choice between two candidates; Barack Obama and Joe Biden, who have consistently endorsed and voted for Pro-Choice legislation, and John McCain and Sarah Palin who have consistently endorsed and voted for Pro-Life legislation. I believe that God’s Word makes it plain that a vote for the Obama/Biden ticket in this election is tantamount to sin, because it aids and abets the continuation of this horrible atrocity.

II Chronicles 7:14 promises if “My people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin and will heal their land.” If you voted early, and you voted for the Obama/Biden ticket, repent and be forgiven. 1 John 1:9 says “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”

If you haven’t yet voted, please choose to vote for those who will strive to end the abominable practice of abortion, and trust God, not the politicians, “to heal our land”.

by
BOB STANECK

True Colors!

In this audio clip, Barak Obama compares a post WW II United States to NAZI Germany. Maybe he was listening in Reverend Wright's church after all! Compare this to Reverend Wright's comments in the video following. Notice a common theme?





*Caution the following video contains strong language *





In this video Jeremiah Wright claims that our government perpetuated a genocidal experiment against African Americans. Perhaps this is what OBama is referring to. Wait a minute I thought he had never heard these radical statements made by his pastor!

We cannot afford to elect someone with these radical views about our country to the highest office in the land!

Upcoming Union Legislation Facing Congress

As of the reading of this article, there is a good chance we have either elected a new President or we are in the middle of a “hanging chad” type ordeal that could drag out for a while.  In either instance, sentiment is very mixed, if not divided, on what either candidate means to our country in the coming four years, and even more so, what either candidate means to our economy.  What is not debatable, what can not be spun in either direction, is that we are in unprecedented times of economic challenges, and there are some things rearing their heads that we have to consider their potential negative, if not devastative impact, on our economy.  One of those things is the upcoming legislation that will be brought up in Congress about the Employee Free Choice Act, or the Card Check legislation.

When unions first emerged on the American landscape back in 1953, their formation was fairly simple and regulated.  Those interested in forming a union could gather signature cards, and once they had more than 30% of the total employees signed off on forming a union, they could then ask for a secret ballot election, which would be overseen by the Federal Government.  Once they had 50% of the votes from that employer, their union was certified.  This new legislation exposes everyone to a very dangerous process in that it would allow union organizers to solicit signatures openly in public to employees subjecting them to threats, intimidation, and abuse, and once 50% of the employees signed off on this legislation, the union would be formed.  By this legislation, there would be NO election, and the right to a secret ballot would be ILLEGAL!  Imagine this in context to the recent Presidential election.  Imagine if your vote was not secret.  Imagine if you were allowed to be pressured to vote for a particular candidate openly, in public, facing ridicule and threats if you did not vote for them, and had to sign off on a card for that candidate.  Its very similar in that you are voting on your job, your source of income, and with this proposed legislation, you as an employee would be bullied into signing these cards for a union.

What does this mean to employers, and to the livelihood of our community?  This legislation would allow people to form unions at ANY size company, period.  It would allow the smallest of offices to the largest of companies to form unions.  Employees would have to pay union dues, even if they did not want to, and rely on union representatives to negotiate all the different aspects of their benefits on their behalf.  Unions have proven to be very corrupt, with money not going to promised areas of contributions, and for the most part, have not shown to help employees standing in too many areas.  In fact, unions have done more damage in this country as a whole than they have good.  This kind of union legislation has impacts across our state.  Currently, Arkansas is a Right to Work state, and that gives employers the ability to hire and fire as they want, as well as employees to do what they want.  Not having a heavy union presence in our state is very attractive to companies that are interested in locating here, and if we allow this legislation to pass, things will change so drastically that one competitive advantage we have will be eliminated. 

In talking with some of our largest employers in our area, they all agree that for the most part, if you treat your employees with dignity and respect you don’t have to worry about union influences.  But, rogue legislation will allow employees who have interests of unions first in their minds, and not what would be best for all employees.

What we have an opportunity to do, and each and every one that reads this article should call or send a letter to their congressman, is retain the rights we have as employees to not be represented by corrupt unions and unions groups, but that we remain in control of our own professional lives.  I believe that as a whole, people in our area want good paying jobs provided by good companies, who provide good benefits.  Being able to attract those companies here to our area will be severely limited by this kind of legislation.  Last year, in the House of Representatives, this legislation passed and Representative Marion Berry voted for this legislation.  Currently, Senator Blanche Lincoln is undecided and Senator Mark Pryor is in favor.  This legislation benefits only union bosses and organizations, not the employers, and especially not the employees.  Do your research on this bill, but we would encourage you to contact your congressman and urge them strongly to vote no on this legislation!