Gov. Scott Slams House Over Visit Florida Cut
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TALLAHASSEE (CBSMiami/NSF) - Gov. Rick Scott has criticized House leaders for their budget proposal concerning the state's tourism marketing agency Visit Florida.
This week the House proposed providing $25 million to the agency, that's $51 million less than what Scott and the Senate are seeking.
Scott said the House, which also wants to abolish the economic development agency Enterprise Florida, is "ignoring" Floridians.
"Over and over again, politicians in the House have failed to understand that Florida is competing for job creation projects against other states and countries across the globe," Scott said in a prepared statement.
House Speaker Richard Corcoran, who considers business-incentives "corporate welfare," has attributed the growth in Florida's tourism to an improvement in the economy and people having more disposable income. The House has already voted to eliminate Enterprise Florida, an agency that the Senate has proposed to receive more than $80 million next fiscal year.
Scott has been holding "roundtables" across the state with local business leaders to call out House members who voted for the bill to kill Enterprise Florida.
The News Service of Florida contributed to this report.