Development board is changing some policies

The Governor's Office of Economic Development will alter some policies and procedures to ensure that the GOED board has plenty of information before voting on whether to give companies state funds for expansions or relocations.

GOED staffers and board members discussed the changes during a board meeting Friday. They basically involve earlier and deeper scrutiny of applications for both the full board and a board committee that reviews applications in-depth.

Among the changes are having the state run economic models to determine the impact of potential deals and having incentive committee meetings a full week ahead of board meetings rather than the current two hours. Board members also will have several days to review recommendations from the committee before their traditional Friday monthly meetings.

GOED will send approved companies commitment letters early the next week, and the companies will have 30 days to respond. GOED also wants signed contracts in place within 90 days of approvals. Previously, companies have been allowed six months to respond to the commitment letters.

"We view this as a really important thing to do, because we're all about getting companies going and getting them growing fast," Michael Nelson, director of corporate recruiting and incentives, told the board. He noted that companies can receive some extensions if they have valid reasons.

Board member Richard Nelson, who abstained from voting on Friday's incentives matters because he said he lacked enough information about the companies, called the changes "a big step forward" and "very, very helpful."

Board Chairman David Simmons said he also wants to see comparison data about other locations companies are considering when applying for Utah incentives "to see how Utah stacks up."

Simmons cited as an example a company applying for $3 million or $4 million, but data might show Utah already being a $5 million to $10 million cheaper alternative than other potential sites.

"I think that's critical data that we need to know, because they're already saving an enormous amount coming to Utah based on our data," he said. "It may not be necessary to give that same sized incentive or any incentive at all."

Simmons also said he wants more board participation on the committee. Up to seven board members can be on the committee, and he wants it at that level.

Although it did not come up during Friday's meeting, some of the changes may have been spurred by the board's April approvals for a pair of nontraditional incentives. The board at the time approved $550,000 for a nonprofit Center for Applied Media to re-establish the digital media environment in Utah and implement a business development network, plus $250,000 for a program allowing university students to make investment decisions.

Simmons was not at the April meeting, which uncharacteristically featured some board members voting against approval or abstaining on those two matters.

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E-mail: bwallace@desnews.com