[00:00:01]
WHEELS TURNING OVER THERE.[Call to Order]
SPECIAL WORKSHOP MEETING, THE COCHRAN COUNTY COMMISSIONER'S COURT IS CALLED THE ORDER.IT'S TUESDAY, FEBRUARY FOUR, 2014.
WE'RE IN THE SECOND POOR CONFERENCE MEETING ROOM LOCATED TAKE THE COURTHOUSE.
UM, I THINK WE'LL DISPENSE WITH THE FORMALITIES THAT WE WOULD NORMALLY HAVE.
IT BEING SUCH A SMALL CABLE, UH, I HAVE NO THING, I HAVEN'T ROUTINE FORCED ON US.
AND YOU ALL HAVE BEEN NOTIFIED BY EMAIL THAT OUR NEXT COMMISSIONER COURT MEANING IS GOING TO BE ON MONDAY, WHICH WAS 10 AS OPPOSED TO TUESDAY BECAUSE WE'RE ALL PLANNING TO ATTEND.
THE CONFERENCE STARTS ON TUESDAY.
DOES ANYBODY ELSE HAVE ANY OKAY.
[3. Carlton Schwab; To discuss Economic Development for Kaufman County]
REBECCA BRIEF US A LITTLE BIT ABOUT OUR POLICY AND WHAT SOME OF THE STATUTORY REQUIREMENTS ARE ON THAT.AND THEN WE'RE GONNA TALK ABOUT A POLICY.
I'M GOING TO ASK A CALL TO THE STRONG CARLTON.
HE IS THE, UH, WHAT'S YOUR TITLE? PRESIDENT.
HE IS PRESIDENT OF TEXAS ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COUNCIL.
UH, AND IT'S, UH, YOU'RE RADICALLY, WHY IS THIS PERSON WHEN IT COMES TO ECONOMIC STATE OF TEXAS.
SO TELL US WHAT WE HAVE TO DO.
WHAT ARE WE, THOSE OF YOU WHO HAVEN'T MET, MY NAME'S REBECCA LYNBROOK.
I WORKED FOR THE DA'S OFFICE AND THE CIVIL DIVISION.
AND SO TODAY YOU GUYS ARE GOING TO BE ASKED TO LOOK AT THE THREE 12 POLICY WITHIN THE TAX CODE.
YOU HAVE TO RE UP THAT EVERY TWO YEARS IN ORDER TO PARTICIPATE IN TAX ABATEMENT.
AND I KNOW YOU GUYS ARE PROBABLY MORE FAMILIAR WITH REBATES RIGHT NOW BECAUSE THAT'S WHAT WE'VE BEEN DOING LATELY.
AND THOSE ARE THREE 81 AGREEMENTS.
SO TWO TOTALLY SEPARATE THINGS IN THE PAST THAT KAUFMAN COUNTY HAS INTEGRATED THEM INTO ONE, YOU'RE NOT REQUIRED TO HAVE A POLICY OR GUIDELINE FOR YOUR THREE 81 AGREEMENTS, BUT YOU ARE FOR YOUR THREE 12.
UM, THE ONLY REASON THEY WERE INTEGRATED TOGETHER IS TO STREAMLINE THAT PROCESS BECAUSE THEY, UM, YOU TEND TO GET LARGER REQUESTS FOR MORE YEARS BECAUSE THERE'S NOT A CAP ON THE GREEDY ONE.
BUT THEN THERE IS ON THE THREE 12, UM, SO TODAY, FIRST WORKSHOP AND THEN WITHIN THE NEXT COUPLE OF WEEKS YOU GUYS ARE GONNA BE LOOKING AT ADOPTING THOSE GUIDELINES FOR YOUR THREE 12 STATUTE REQUIRES SEVEN DAYS NOTICE.
UM, TALK TO ANNABEL ABOUT POSTING THAT THIS WEEK WITH A POTENTIAL DATE OF THE 25TH OF FEBRUARY, DEPENDING ON WHERE YOU GUYS ARE AT ON THAT.
BUT THAT'S THE BASIC GIST OF IT.
AND THEN I'M SURE THAT MR SWAB HAS A LOT OF NEW INFORMATION TOO THAT WE CAN INTEGRATE INTO OUR POLICY.
DO YOU GUYS HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? OKAY.
UH, WE ALSO HAVE A REPRESENTATIVE, SARAH OCCURS FROM, UH, OUR APPRAISAL DISTRICT.
AND, UM, I WOULD LIKE TO ASK YOU ALL TO RATE FOR CAROL EDC.
YOU NEVER ASK QUESTIONS, PARTICIPATE WITH US IN HIS, UH, PAYMENTS AND POLICIES CAN BE OKAY.
APPRAISAL OFFICE AND THE TAX OFFICE TO TEXAS SYSTEM.
SO, UM, CARLTON COME ON UP AND SIT DOWN.
I ASKED CARL TINDER, LOOK AT OUR BANK POLICY AND TALK TO US ABOUT ABATEMENT IS REALLY JUST A TOOL OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT.
SO JUST KIND OF MAYBE GIVE US SOME INSIGHT.
I CAN, DO YOU WANT ME TO JUST SIT HERE? I'LL SIT HERE, DO WHATEVER YOU WANT.
I MEAN, I MIGHT BURN OFF SOME ENERGY.
UM, I BROUGHT ALONG SOME, UM, SOME MATERIALS THAT I'M GOING TO LEAVE WITH YOU ALL IN ADDITION TO THE PRESENTATION.
A LOT OF WHAT I'M GOING TO TALK ABOUT IS IN THIS, UH, PRINTED MATERIAL THAT WE JUST HAD DONE.
UM, IT'S, UH, A STUDY BY RAY AND YOU MAY HAVE HEARD OF HIM, BUT NOBODY, UH, ECONOMIST, IT'S CALLED THE MARKET FOR PROSPERITY.
AND IT TALKS ABOUT ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND HOW ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT WORKS IN THIS.
THIS PUBLICATION IS SPECIFICALLY NOT DESIGNING FOR FOLKS LIKE YOURSELVES, UM, THAT ARE IN LEADERSHIP POSITIONS, ELECTED OFFICIALS, BOARD MEMBERS.
[00:05:01]
FOR YOU ALL AFTER I'M DONE TALKING.AND A LOT OF WHAT I'M GOING TO TALK ABOUT TODAY IS FROM THIS NEW STUDY THAT WE JUST PRODUCED, UM, IN DECEMBER.
SO WHAT I'D LIKE TO DO IS START BY TALKING A LITTLE BIT ABOUT SORT OF THE THEORY AND PRACTICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND WHERE INCENTIVES COMING COMMITTED, EXCUSE ME, COMING INTO PLAY, UH, AS PART OF THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, UH, PROCESS A LITTLE BIT ABOUT US.
OUR ORGANIZATION WAS ESTABLISHED IN 1961.
UM, BACK WHEN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT WAS REALLY INDUSTRIAL DEVELOPMENT AND PEOPLE TALKED ABOUT, UM, YOU KNOW, THE, THE, THE TERM ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT REALLY WASN'T USED BACK THEN.
IT WAS INDUSTRIAL DEVELOPMENT IN COMMUNITIES AND REGIONS WERE CHASING INDUSTRY FACTORIES TO BOLSTER THEIR, UM, THEIR LOCAL REGIONAL ECONOMIES.
WE ARE A PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATION OF LARGEST IN THE COUNTRY SUPPORTING, UH, THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT WORLD.
UM, OUR MEMBERS TYPICALLY ARE FOLKS LIKE RAY WHO REPRESENT, UM, THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ORGANIZATIONS AT THE LOCAL LEVEL.
WE HAVE ABOUT 875 MEMBERS, UH, IN OUR ORGANIZATION.
ANOTHER 225 ARE FOLKS LIKE Y'ALL THAT MIGHT BE ELECTED OFFICIALS.
THEY MIGHT BE, UM, LOCAL COUNCIL MEMBERS.
THEY MIGHT BE, UH, MAYORS THAT ARE INTERESTED IN HAVING EXTRA ORDINARY INTEREST IN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, UH, EITHER LOCALLY OR ON A STATEWIDE BASIS.
UH, EVERY OTHER YEAR WE'RE, UH, WE SPEND OUR, UH, SPRINGS, UH, AT THE TEXAS LEGISLATURE WHERE WE WORK IN ADVOCACY, IN SUPPORT OF PUBLIC POLICIES THAT ARE PRO ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT IN OUR STATE.
AND THAT'S A BIG PART OF WHAT WE DO.
UH, AND, AND WE FEEL LIKE, YOU KNOW, OUR STATE HAS BEEN INCREDIBLY SUCCESSFUL, UH, THE LAST REALLY SINCE THE 2008, 2009 RECESSION.
AND PART OF THAT IS, IS THE FACT THAT WE ARE CLEARLY THE BEST IN THE COUNTRY AT LOCAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT.
WE HAVE THE BEST PROFESSIONALS AND WE HAVE THE MOST RESOURCES IN TERMS OF, UH, THE KINDS OF RESOURCES WE CAN BRING TO BEAR, UH, IN ORDER TO MAKE PROJECTS HAPPEN.
UM, YOU KNOW, LOT OF STATES ARE OUT THERE TRYING TO EMULATE HOW WE DO ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT.
AND ONE OF THE THINGS I'D LIKE TO ADD RELATED TO THAT IS ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT IN TEXAS IS DECIDEDLY A LOCAL ENTERPRISE.
YOU KNOW, IF YOU'RE DOING PROJECTS IN GEORGIA OR INDIANA, EVEN NORTH CAROLINA, THOSE ARE THREE VERY SUCCESSFUL STATE STATES IN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT.
THE DIFFERENCE THERE IS THE PROJECT TENDS TO EMANATE FROM THE STATE CAPITOL.
IF YOU'RE DOING A PROJECT JUST ABOUT ANYWHERE IN GEORGIA, THE CALL IS GOING TO GO INTO ATLANTA AND SOMEBODY IN ATLANTA IS GOING TO CALL SOMEBODY IN BOLTON OR VALDOSTA OR GAINESVILLE OR ANY OF THOSE CITIES THAT ARE POTENTIALLY BIBLE FOR THAT ECONOMICAL PROJECT.
THE DIFFERENCE HERE IS WE'RE ALL, WE AREN'T COMMUNITIES, OUR REGIONS OR COUNTIES, WE'RE ALL OUT THERE ON OUR OWN.
WE'RE NOT GETTING, I MEAN, WE HAVE AN ACTIVE STATE EFFORT, BUT IT BEGINS THE LOCAL ACTIVITY, YOU KNOW, RAISE, GO OVER YOUR WORK, WORKING IN TERRIBLE.
HE'S GOING AND HE'S GOING TO HAVE TO GEN UP THE KINDS OF PROJECTS MORE THAN LIKELY THAT ARE KIND OF TERRIBLE ON HIMSELF.
HE'S NOT GOING TO SIT AROUND AND WAIT FOR A CALL FROM AUSTIN AND NEITHER ARE THE FOLKS IN THE MORNING OR KAUFMAN OR CAMP OR WHEREVER.
IT'S ON THE COMMUNITIES AS OPPOSED TO THE STATE HAVING A HUGE ROLE.
DOES THAT MAKE SENSE? THE STATE PLAYS A SECONDARY ROLE IN TEXAS, WHEREAS MOST OTHER STATE STATES IT PLAYS A PRIMER.
UM, BECAUSE MAINLY TO TWO REASONS HISTORICALLY, UM, TEXAS REALLY DIDN'T DO A LOT, DIDN'T HAVE TO THINK ABOUT OR GAS MILITARY BASIS.
UM, YOU KNOW, UH, AGRICULTURE WE'RE TALKING, YOU KNOW, PRE EIGHTIES RECESSION.
[00:10:01]
UH, WITHOUT US REALLY HAVING TO TRY IT.NOW, YOU KNOW, YOU HAD THE MAJOR CITIES GENERALLY HAD INDUSTRIAL FOUNDATIONS IN LAND SET ASIDE FOR INDUSTRIAL DEVELOPMENT AND THEN YOU HAD AGGRESSIVE SORT OF REGIONAL PLAYERS.
TEMPLE FOR EXAMPLE, IT'S BEEN IN THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT SPACE SINCE, YOU KNOW, PRE WORLD WAR II.
TYLER WAS ALWAYS PRETTY AGGRESSIVE IN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT.
YOU GO OUT IN WEST TEXAS, ABILENE WAS, HAS HISTORICALLY BEEN AGGRESSIVE, BUT FOR THE MOST PART, OUR COMMUNITIES AT THE LOCAL LEVEL MISSED WHAT I WOULD CALL THE GOLDEN AGE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, WHICH REALLY BEGAN NATIONWIDE AFTER THE GREAT RECESSION AND POST WORLD WAR TWO.
THAT'S WHEN, YOU KNOW, THE TOWNS IN GENERALLY THROUGHOUT THE SOUTH CREATED INDUSTRIAL FOUNDATIONS AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT BECAME A PART OF THE, SORT OF THE LOCAL CALLING OF ELECTED OFFICIALS AND COMMUNITY LEADERS.
UM, WE MISS THAT BECAUSE WE DIDN'T HAVE TO BE GOOD.
THEN WE HAD THE EIGHTIES RECESSION.
THE LEGISLATURE CREATED THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, SALES TAX AND OFF WE WERE RUNNING WITH A PUBLICLY MONEY NEEDED, PUBLICLY FUNDED ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT EFFORT AT THE LOCAL LEVEL.
AND I DON'T THINK THAT BILL RATLIFF COULD HAVE ENVISIONED IN 1989 THAT 725 ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ORGANIZATIONS WOULD BE CREATED BY A SENSE.
I MEAN, I THINK PROBABLY IN THOSE DAYS YOU WOULD HAVE ASKED HIM, HE'D SAY, OH, I THINK THE STATE WILL CREATE A COUPLE OF HUNDRED OF THESE AND THERE'LL BE CREATIVE IN PLACES LIKE TERRIBLE THAT YOU KNOW, THAT ARE SATELLITES OF, UH, YOU KNOW, A REGIONAL HUB OF ECONOMIC ACTIVITY.
SO THERE'S 725 AT LAST COUNT GENERATING OVER A BILLION DOLLARS IN REVENUE ANNUALLY.
SO, YOU KNOW, ALL OF THIS IN THE PUBLIC SPHERE TO ALL OF THIS TRANSPARENT, UH, YOU KNOW, THERE'S, NONE OF THIS STUFF IS DOING, BUT BY VIRTUE OF THE WAY THE LAW IS WRITTEN, THERE'S NONE OF THIS STUFF GOING ON IN SMOKE FILLED ROOMS. OKAY.
AND THAT'S THE BEAUTY OF IT, IN MY OPINION.
WE'RE DOING IT WITH PUBLIC DOLLARS IN THE STATE, BUT WE'RE DOING IT IN SUCH.
SO, UH, IT'S, IT'S, IT'S AMAZING, BUT IT'S LIKE THIS HAPPENED TO US AND NOW THAT'S OUR HISTORY AND WE'RE 31 YEARS, UH, IN MAY OF HAVING THE LOCAL ED SALES TAX OR THE LOCAL OPTION, 80 CENTS TAX.
AND, UH, YOU KNOW, THE LAST STUDY WE HAD DONE, IT WAS DIRECTLY, THERE WAS THE CREATION OF ABOUT A MILLION JOBS WHERE THE RESULT OF THE DIRECT INVOLVEMENT OF THE ED SALES TAX ORGANIZATIONS IN THE STATE.
AND THE RETURN WAS ABOUT 11 TO ONE IN TERMS OF DOLLARS INVESTED, INVESTED ECONOMIC CHURN, TAX REVENUES, THOSE KINDS OF THINGS.
SO HERE WE ARE 30 YEARS LATER, 30 PLUS YEARS LATER.
UH, AND YOU KNOW, OUR WORK AT THE LEGISLATURE IS, HEY, LEAVE IT ALONE.
IT'S WORKING AND IT'S ON THE COMMUNITIES.
IT'S A LOCAL OPTION, UM, ENDEAVOR.
UH, AND SO IT'S ONE OF THE REASONS WE'VE GOTTEN INTO THIS LOCAL CONTROL FIGHT.
IT'S BECAUSE, HEY, THE ECONOMIC DEPENDENCE SALES TAX IS THE ULTIMATE OR ONE OF THE ULTIMATE LOCAL CONTROL ISSUES.
CITIZENS WHO COME TOGETHER TO TAX THEMSELVES TO SUPPORT ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT OR CHOOSE NOT TO TEXT THEMSELVES AND NOT HAVE A LOCAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION REAL QUICK, BUT THAT'S IMPORTANT TO TALK ABOUT.
UH, I WANT TO TALK ABOUT, UM, SOME FACTORS THAT GO INTO EVERY SUCCESSFUL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT EFFORT, UH, KNOWLEDGE OF THE STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES OF THE LOCAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT EFFORTS AND THE LOCAL AND REGIONAL ECONOMY, UM, STRATEGIES TO ACHIEVE THE GOALS OF THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ORGANIZATIONS.
AND AGAIN, COFFIN COUNTY, YOU ALL HAVE, UH, YOU KNOW, A VERY DIVERSE ECONOMY.
SO FORTIES, UM, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT EFFORTS ARE GOING TO BE DIFFERENT FROM TERRELL'S.
KAUFMAN'S IS GOING TO BE DIFFERENT FROM TERRELL'S AND FORTIES, BUT AGAIN, THEY'VE GOT TO KNOW AND THEY'VE GOT TO DECIDE WHAT THEY WANT FOR THEIR INDIVIDUAL, UH, COMMUNITIES, CONNECTIONS BETWEEN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND WHAT NOT FROM HIM.
UM, ANYWAY, THOSE ARE THE SORT OF 10 FACTORS THAT RELATE TO YOUR, UM, ECONOMIC
[00:15:01]
DEVELOPMENT HERE IN KAUFMAN COUNTY.YOU KNOW, BEFORE WE GET INTO THIS DISCUSSION OF INCENTIVES, UM, IT, IT NEEDS TO BE NOTED THAT INCENTIVES COME AT THE END OF THE PROCESS.
TYPICALLY, UH, YOU'VE GOT TO HAVE THESE FACTORS, UH, IN PLACE BEFORE YOU CAN EVEN GET TO THE INCENTIVE PIECE.
AND THAT WAS THINKING ABOUT, UH, SENDING OUT WORKFORCE, PUBLIC ED TAX POLICY INFRASTRUCTURE.
UM, I WAS THINKING ABOUT THE INCENTIVE WORLD.
I WAS FORTUNATE ENOUGH TO WORK IN CORPORATE SITE LOCATION FOR A NUMBER OF YEARS AND WE DID THE, UH, UP UNTIL MERCEDES, OUR LITTLE COMPANY BASED IN CHICAGO HAD, HAD DONE EVERY FOREIGN, UH, AUTOMOTIVE ASSEMBLY PLANT IN THE UNITED STATES GOING DATING BACK TO VOLKSWAGEN IN PENNSYLVANIA, UH, IN 1959 WHEN WE FINISHED BMW AND THEY LOCATED IN GREER, SOUTH CAROLINA.
I'M GIVING YOU THIS EXAMPLE BECAUSE THIS IS HOW THE WORLD HAS CHANGED.
THEY SAID, OKAY, WE'RE GLAD WE'RE GOING THERE.
DO YOU THINK THAT THE STATE OF SOUTH CAROLINA WOULD GIVE US SOME INCENTIVES NOW THAT WE'VE DECIDED TO LOCATE IN CAREER SOUTH CAROLINA? AND WE WERE SAYING, WELL, OF COURSE THEY WOULD.
AND WE GOT INVOLVED IN NEGOTIATING SOME INCENTIVES.
ANY 1992, THE STATE OF SOUTH CAROLINA SENT THE EMPLOYEES OF THAT BMW PLANT TO GERMANY FOR SIX WEEKS OF TRAINING.
I DON'T THINK YOU COULD DO THAT TODAY IN TEXAS, JUST BY VIRTUE OF THE WAY WE THINK.
WE OFTEN THINK ABOUT INCENTIVES, BUT STAY IN SOUTH CAROLINA, PAID FOR THAT TO HAPPEN IN THE COURSE OF, HE'S BEEN IN GREENVILLE, SPARTANBURG, IN THAT AREA.
THERE'S JUST AN INCREDIBLE CLUSTER OF, UH, FOREIGN AUTOMOTIVE ACTIVITY, UH, UNLIKE ANY OTHER PLACE AS FAR AS BMW IS CONCERNED, UH, EXCEPT FOR GERMANY.
SO, UM, YOU KNOW, THIS, THIS WHOLE INCENTIVE WORLD IS SOMETHING THAT REALLY HAD ITS BEGINNINGS AROUND THAT TIME.
AND EVERYBODY STARTED GETTING INTO THE GAME, UH, NOT LONG AFTER THAT NORTH CAROLINA, WHEN THEY HEARD ABOUT WHAT SOUTH CAROLINA DID FOR, UH, BMW, THEY BROUGHT US IN AND WE EXPLAINED WHAT, WHAT SOUTH CAROLINA GAVE HIM.
AND JIM HUNT WAS THE, MAYBE IT'S A RELATIVE DISTANT RELATIVE.
HE WAS THE GOVERNOR OF NORTH AT THE TIME.
HE WAS LIKE, HOW CAN THIS BE? I COULD, FIRST OF ALL, I COULD SLOWLY SOUTH CAROLINA BEAT US NORTH CAROLINA WITH, YOU KNOW, UH, FOR THIS PROJECT AND HOW CAN THEY DO INSANE AS WELL.
YOU KNOW, WITHIN SIX MONTHS, NORTH CAROLINA WAS DOING INCENTIVES BECAUSE THE MARKET HAD BEGUN TO SHIFT.
AND WE'LL GET INTO THAT, THAT MORE AND MORE OF A LARGER SCALE OPERATIONS FOR SEEKING INCENTIVES AND GIVING AGAIN.
YOU KNOW, I THINK ALL OF US IN THIS ROOM WOULD AGREE THAT, GOSH, I WISH WE DIDN'T HAVE TO DO THIS STUFF.
IT'S DISTASTEFUL, BUT IT IS THE MARKETPLACE.
AND IF, IF YOU WILL GET OUT OF IT, UM, THAT WOULD BE SOMEBODY ELSE'S ADVANTAGE.
AND I'M NOT SUGGESTING YOU DO OBVIOUSLY, BUT UNLESS THERE'S UNILATERAL DISARMAMENT IN THE INCENTIVES REALM, IT'S GOING TO KEEP ON GOING.
AND I'M NOT SO SURE THAT IF YOU UNIVERSALLY DISARMED, IF IT WASN'T DONE UNDER THE TABLE AT THAT POINT BECAUSE OF THE COMPETITION FOR JOBS AND INVEST, THAT'S WHERE WE ARE AT THIS POINT.
SO I'M GOING TO JUST KIND OF FLY THROUGH THIS NEXT PART.
I'M SURE YOU ALL KNOW A LOT OF THE ESSENTIAL CONDITIONS RELATED TO SUCCESS, FAIR AND COMPETITIVE TAX STRUCTURE RESPONSIBLE, I MEAN, RESPONSIBLE GOVERNMENT ENTITIES, UH, GOOD REGULATORY CLIMATE, UH, AND STRATEGIES SHOULD BE BASED ON THIS.
UH, IF YOU WANT TO LOOK, UH, CLOCKWISE UNDERSTANDING THE STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES, UH, THE, THE, UH, ABILITY TO ATTRACT COMPANIES THAT CAN, UH, TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE STRENGTHS AND OVERCOME THE WEAKNESSES.
AND THEN OF COURSE, THE EMERGENCE OF SOME KIND OF CLUSTER OF COMPANIES THAT EVOLVE AROUND YOUR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT.
[00:20:01]
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT EFFORTS THAT ARE SUCCESSFUL, HAVING GREAT ONLINE PRESENCE, THEY UNDERSTAND THEIR COMPARATIVE ADVANTAGES AND THEY'RE ABLE TO TAKE THAT STORY TO THE BROADER WORLD OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PROSPECTS.AND THEN YOU HAVE SOMETHING STUFF THAT YOU ALL HAVE ALREADY SEEN.
ONE OF THE THINGS THAT'S, THAT IS INCREASINGLY A FACTOR IS YOU ALL ARE NOT COMPETING WITH GREENVILLE AND SULFUR SPRINGS AND SHERMAN DENISON.
YOU'RE COMPETING WITH LOCATIONS IN MEXICO, UH, IN EUROPE, IN CANADA.
UH, IT TRULY IS A GLOBAL ECONOMY.
UH, IT, IT, IT AFFECTS EVERYTHING THAT HAPPENS IN THE DECISIONS THAT ARE MADE IN THE PRIMARY JOB CREATORS IN YOUR REGION.
SO WHAT WE'RE LOOKING FOR IN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ARE THE COMPANIES THAT IN JUDGE RICHARDSON, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THIS IN THIS OFFICE A LITTLE BIT EARLIER.
WE'RE LOOKING FOR THE PRIMARY JOB PRODUCING COMPANIES, THE COMPANIES THAT PRODUCE A GOOD OR SERVICE THAT SIT OUTSIDE OF THE REGION.
SOMETHING THAT'S PRODUCED HERE, SENT AWAY MONEY COMES IN FROM THE OUTSIDE IN, IN TERMS OF THE HIGHEST FORM OF WAGES AND BENEFITS.
AND THEN THAT MONEY IS CHURNED THROUGH THE LOCAL AND REGIONAL ECONOMY, BUT MULTIPLIER EFFECT OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT.
THAT'S REALLY WHAT ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT IS ALL ABOUT.
HE WAS TELLING ME ABOUT HAVING GONE TO HEAR MILTON FRIEDMAN AT H AND M MANY, MANY YEARS AGO, AND HE WAS EXPLAINING ABOUT, UH, YOU KNOW, THE ECONOMIC CHURN OF, UH, THE PRIMARY BUSINESSES SPREADING.
SO THE EXISTING BUSINESSES AND INDUSTRY, THEN THE PLAYERS AND CUSTOMERS OF THOSE, AND THEY CREATE WHAT'S CALLED A CLUSTER.
SO HERE'S AN EXAMPLE OF, OF THE MULTIPLIER EFFECT OF FIVE 500 MANUFACTURING JOBS IN THE PHARMACEUTICAL SECTOR AVERAGING $67,000 A YEAR HAS ABOUT A FOUR TO ONE MULTIPLIER EFFECT.
IF YOU LOOK IN THE RIGHT HAND BOXES, THERE'S AN EXAMPLE OF WHAT THOSE MANUFACTURING JOBS CREATE.
YOU KNOW, ONE OF THE, UH, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT HAS GONE ON IN KAUFMAN COUNTY IS THE, THE RETAIL SECTOR AND THE HOUSING SECTOR HAS CAUGHT UP TO A GREAT DEAL OF SUCCESS IN ATTRACTING AND RETAINING PRIMARY EMPLOYERS.
UM, YOU HAVE A FABULOUS TRACK RECORD OF THAT OVER THE LAST 30 YEARS.
AND, UM, YOU KNOW, A LOT OF THIS RETAIL GROWTH NOW IS A PRODUCT OF THE FACT THAT YOU HAVE A LOT OF GOOD JOBS, UH, IN THIS COUNTY.
INCENSE AND INCENTIVES RARELY IF EVER DRIVE THE LOCATION DECISION.
UM, AND, UH, BACK WHEN I WAS IN THE SITE LOCATION BUSINESS, IF WE HAD POTENTIAL CLIENTS AND SAID, UM, WE WANT ONCE YOU TO FIND THIS A LOCATION THAT GIVES US THE BEST WILL GIVE US THE BEST INCENTIVES.
AND IN FACT, WE DIDN'T DO, UM, THE MERCEDES, UH, LOCATION IN ALABAMA BECAUSE MERCEDES APPROACHED US WITH THAT AND WE SAID, NONE OF THEM KNOW WE'RE GONNA DO THE SCIENCE AND FIND YOU THE BEST LOCATION BASED ON ALL THE FACTORS THAT GO INTO YOUR DECISION MAKING PROCESS.
YOU CAN IN TERMS OF YOUR CUSTOMERS AND, AND WHAT YOU'RE TRYING TO ACCOMPLISH AND THEN WE'LL HELP YOU WITH THE INCENTIVES.
WE ALREADY KNOW THAT ALABAMA IS GOING TO GIVE US, YOU KNOW, ZILLIONS OF DOLLARS.
AND SO WE DON'T REALLY NEED YOU BECAUSE, UM, YOU KNOW, WHERE WE THINK WE CAN JUST GO TO ALABAMA AND, AND WE'LL MAKE IT HAPPEN.
WELL, I DON'T KNOW HOW MANY OF YOU ALL KNOW THAT ALABAMA ALMOST BANKRUPTED ITSELF IN THE NINETIES WITH WHAT THEY GAVE BE A MERCEDES NOW.
YOU KNOW, GOD BLESS THEM, CONGRATULATIONS.
BUT THEY DID NOT GO THROUGH THE SCIENCE OF CORPORATE SITE LOCATION AND JUST SAID, YOU KNOW WHAT, A BMW IS OVER THERE IN SOUTH CAROLINA.
WE'RE GOING TO MAKE IT WORK IN ALABAMA.
HIGHLY UNUSUAL THOUGH IN TERMS OF THE WAY THE BUSINESS WORKS.
YOU MIGHT KNOW, Y'ALL REMEMBER THE SATURNS REMEMBER THEN? THE SATURDAY TOMORROW.
SO GM WAS DECIDED TO BUILD SATURN'S IN TENNESSEE AND SPRINGHILL TENNESSEE, JUST SOUTH OF NASHVILLE IN WHEN THEY WERE UNDERGOING THAT PROCESS.
[00:25:01]
HEARD ABOUT, OH, GM IS GOING TO BUILD THIS NEW CAR.LET'S, LET'S, LET'S ADVERTISE OUR STATE.
AND TEXAS DID, UH, AT THAT TIME, THE GOVERNOR OF MINNESOTA, A GUY BY THE NAME OF RUDY BOOT KITSCH AT THE TIME, HE, HE SAID, WE'RE HERE IN MINNESOTA.
WE'RE GOING TO GIVE YOU A BILLION DOLLARS TO LOCATE A SATURN PLAN IN MINNESOTA.
AND GM, TO THEIR CREDIT, UNLIKE MERCEDES SAID, YOU KNOW WHAT? WE'RE, WE DON'T WANT TO BE IN MINNESOTA.
IT'S NOT IN OUR OPERATING MODEL.
WE, UH, WE'RE NOT GONNA, WE CAN'T MAKE IT WORK IN MINNESOTA.
WE DON'T CARE IF YOU GIVE US A BILLION DOLLARS, WE NEED TO BE IN THE MID SOUTH.
AND MINNESOTA WAS OFF OF OUR, YOU KNOW, A SPHERE OF WHERE WE NEED TO TO BE AND TO REACH OUR CUSTOMERS, SUPPLIERS AND ALL THAT KIND OF STUFF.
SO THAT WAS A CASE WHERE THEY, YOU KNOW, THEY THREW A BILLION DOLLARS AT GM AND GM SAID, NO, WE'RE, WE'RE NOT GOING TO DO IT THAT WAY.
AND GENERALLY SPEAKING, AND YOU KNOW, OUR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PROFESSIONALS KNOW THIS.
THEY GO INTO THE, IF THE PROSPECT COMPANY COMES INTO THE OFFICE AND SAYS, UH, WE'RE NOT KEVIN HERE AND LETS, YOU KNOW, YOU OPEN UP A BALL FOR US, YOU KNOW, IT'S LIKE, SORRY, WE'RE, YOU KNOW, YOU SHOULDN'T BE EVEN NEGOTIATING WITH FOLKS LIKE THAT.
THEY NEED TO BE IN YOUR COMMUNITY BECAUSE, OR THEY SHOULD BE IN THE COMMUNITY BECAUSE THAT'S WHERE THEY NEED TO BE STRATEGICALLY AND ECONOMICALLY.
AND THEN IT BECOMES A TRUE PARTNERSHIP.
SO INCENTIVES SHOULD NEVER BE THE DRIVING COMPONENT OF THE CORPORATE DECISION MAKING PROCESS.
YOU KNOW, UM, YOU CAN, YOU CAN SIT HERE AND YOU CAN HAVE A GRADUATE SCHOOL KIND OF DISCUSSION ON THE MERIT OF INCENTIVES AND YOU ALWAYS COME BACK TO, WELL, GOSH, YOU KNOW, OUR, OUR TAX POLICY, TEXAS IS SO GOOD.
WHY ARE WE EVEN DOING THIS? THEY'RE GOING TO COME HERE ANYWAY.
WELL, THE TRUTH OF THE MATTER IS, OUR TAX POLICY IN TEXAS AIN'T THAT GREAT.
WE, UH, WE, WE HAVE TO DO INCENTIVES TO MITIGATE OUR WEAKNESSES.
IF YOU LOOK AT THE OVERALL TAX BURDEN ON BUSINESSES THAT THE TAX POLICY FOUNDATION DOES, WE'RE ABOUT 26 NOW IN OUR MINDS, WE'RE IN THE TOP FIVE ALWAYS, RIGHT? BUT ONE OF THE, ONE OF OUR MOST SERIOUS DETRIMENTS TO ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT SUCCESS IS THAT SO MUCH OF OUR GOVERNMENT IS FUNDED BY PROPERTY TAXES AND IN, ISN'T IT CRAZY? I'VE ALWAYS THOUGHT IT WAS REALLY CRAZY THAT IN A, IN A STATE THAT, SO VALUES PROPERTY AND PRIVATE PROPERTY THAT WE TAX THE HELL OUT OF IT, UH, AS A WAY.
AND IT'S A GOOD WAY TO SUPPORT OUR SCHOOLS.
I MEAN, THAT'S GENERALLY SPEAKING, MOST OF IT COMES FROM THE SCHOOL PROPERTY TEXTING OR GOES TO THE SCHOOL PARK AND TEXTS.
BUT WHEN IT'S A, IT'S A CRAZY THING.
THERE'S A WHOLE HISTORY BEHIND THAT THAT WE FAILED TO ADDRESS AS WE BECAME A URBAN STATE FROM A VERY RURAL, ONE OF IT REALLY GOES BACK TO WE TAX PROPERTY BECAUSE ONLY THE BIG INSTITUTIONS AND WEALTHY INSTITUTIONS HAD IT AT ONE TIME.
THAT WAS WHERE THE WEALTH WAS AND THAT WAS WHY WE TEXTED IN.
SO WE HAVE TO HAVE INCENTIVES TO COMPETE WITH OTHER STATES.
NOW, IF IT'S A HEAD TO HEAD COMPETITION, FOR EXAMPLE, AND WE'RE COMPETING AGAINST THE OKLAHOMA LOCATION AND THEY DO, THEY ENTER IT INTO THE OPERATING COST MODEL, OUR PROPERTY TAXES VERSUS PROPERTY TEXAS IN OKLAHOMA, THEY DON'T EVEN LOOK AT INCENTIVES, HOW WE MIGHT MITIGATE THOSE PROPERTY TAXES.
WE LOSE EVERY TIME, YOU KNOW, THE WIDGET MANUFACTURER WITH 200 EMPLOYEES, YOU PLUG IN, YOU KNOW, DURAN, OKLAHOMA VERSUS SHARVIN, TEXAS OR DENNISON OR TERRELL, WHEREVER WE LOSE THAT OPERATING COSTS MODEL COMPARISON EVERY TIME BECAUSE OF OUR PROPERTY TAXES.
IF THEY DON'T, THEY'RE JUST LOOKING AT IT PURELY WITHOUT GOING, WELL MAYBE WE CAN GET THEM THE CITIES AND THE COUNTIES AND SCHOOL DISTRICTS TO MITIGATE THAT.
THEY CAN'T DO IT, THE SCHOOL DISTRICT.
BUT IF WE NEED THE CITIES AND COUNTIES TO HELP US WITH THAT, MAYBE WE CAN COMPETE.
BUT IF IT'S A STRAIGHT ON ANALYSIS, WE LOSE, UM, AGAIN, UH, IN INCENTIVES AND PLAY A ROLE IN INSECURITY, LOCATION, EXPANSION, RETENTION.
YOU KNOW, IT'S JUST PART OF THE MARKET NOW.
THAT'S WHAT YOU ALL HAVE TO UNDERSTAND.
AGAIN, IT'D BE NICE IF THIS WEREN'T THE CASE.
BUT ANY COMPANY WORTH ITS SALT OR WORTH
[00:30:01]
ITS ECONOMIC IMPACT KNOWS THIS.NOW THEY KNOW IT, THEY'RE GOING TO PLAY IT.
AND SO IT, IT'S AS RAY, UH,
UM, YOU KNOW, IN YOUR CHALLENGE AND CHALLENGE FOR EVERY ALL YOU ELECTED OFFICIALS IS TO MAKE SURE THAT THE, THE, THE UH, POLICY THAT YOU'VE DEVELOPED A POLICY THAT THE CITIES DEVELOP, THAT IT'S, IT REFLECTS LOCAL PRIORITIES.
IT REFLECTS YOUR EFFORTS TO, UH, ATTRACT THE KIND OF BUSINESS AND INDUSTRY THAT YOU WANT TO YOUR COMMUNITIES.
IT'S UNDERSTANDING WHAT IS POSSIBLE BY USING, UH, THE TOOLS RELATED TO ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT.
UM, AND IF YOU LOOK AT THE SECOND BOX DOWN, VERY IMPORTANT, THE INCENTIVES THAT YOU GET OR GIVE IF, IF THEY'RE DONE WITH THE RIGHT INDUSTRIES AND THE RIGHT COMPANIES SHOULDN'T BE RECOVERED AND VERY QUICKLY AND PERHAPS MORE QUICKLY THAN YOU MIGHT EVEN IMAGINE BECAUSE OF THE GROWTH THAT THE COMPANIES WILL BRING, THE EMPLOYEES, THE NEW TAX REVENUE, UH, THE, THE INCREASED PROPERTY TAXES OVER TIME, RETAIL SALES, ALL OF THOSE THINGS RELATED TO BACK TO THAT MULTIPLIER EFFECT ARE, ARE THE KINDS OF ACTIVITY ACTIVITY THAT WILL HELP YOU RECOVER THE MONEY THAT YOU'VE INVESTED IN, THE FORM OF INCENTIVES TO MAKE SURE THAT THE COMPANY STAYS OR COMES HERE.
UM, AND, AND, UH, YOU KNOW, IN TERMS OF, UH, A PERFECT INCENTIVE POLICY, THERE ISN'T ONE.
UM, IT'S A, IT'S, IT'S, IT'S REALLY ABOUT HAVING A GOOD ONE AND HAVING ONE THAT MEETS, UH, AGAIN, THE NEEDS OF KAUFMAN COUNTY AT THIS POINT IN HISTORY.
SO IN THE NEXT COUPLE OF SLIDES I WANT TO TALK ABOUT, UM, YOU KNOW, SOME OF THE THINGS YOU ALL I KNOW HAVE CONSIDERED, SOME OF THESE MAY ALREADY BE IN YOUR, UM, IN YOUR CONSENT POLICY.
BUT SOME OF THE THINGS YOU SHOULD THINK ABOUT WHO, WHO IS ELIGIBLE? I MEAN, YOU DON'T WANT TO BE GIVING PROPERTY TAX INCENTIVES TO A YOGURT SHOP.
UM, YOU KNOW, THE, THE, THERE'S, THERE'S AN ABSURDITY, UH, IN, IN TERMS OF GIVING INCENTIVES TO REACH OUT.
I UNDERSTAND THAT EVERYBODY, THE BUCKIES, RIGHT.
I MEAN, THAT WAS GREAT TO BRING INTO THE CANNON.
TERRELL LOVES IT BECAUSE IT'S SALES TAX COCAINE, YOU KNOW, I MEAN, IT'S LIKE, OH MY GOSH, WOW, WHAT ARE WE GONNA DO WITH ALL THIS MONEY? YOU KNOW, AND THAT'S GREAT, BUT YOU HAVE THE BUC-EE'S BECAUSE OF THINGS THAT HAPPENED HERE, UM, OVER THE LAST 30 YEARS.
ONE, A PRIMARY JOB DEVELOPMENT HERE THAT, THAT BRINGS PEOPLE INTO THIS COUNTY TO WORK.
SO THERE'S THAT CHURN THAT GOES ON A DAILY BASIS.
THE FACT THAT YOU'RE LOCATED ON NINE 20 CERTAINLY HELPS 30 MILES OUTSIDE OF MAJOR AMERICAN CITY.
UH, THOSE ARE THE KINDS OF THINGS THAT FOLLOW GOOD ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT.
RETAIL AND ROOFTOPS FOLLOW ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT.
THEY'RE NOT A DRIVER THERE OF NOW THE ROOFTOPS YOU HAVE HERE.
PEOPLE WERE COMING IN HERE, A LOT OF THEM ARE, ARE, MIGHT BE WORKING HERE.
BUT AGAIN, BECAUSE OF THE GROWING ECONOMIC ACTIVITY IN KAUFMAN COUNTY, SOME OF THEM ARE SIMPLY MOVING HERE, KEEPING THEIR JOBS IN THE HUGE ECONOMIC ENGINE 30 MILES TO YOUR WEST.
I MEAN, YOU CAN SAY THAT ABOUT ALL OF THE COUNTIES SURROUNDING, UH, YOU KNOW, DALLAS IN, IN, UH, IN FORT WORTH, JOB QUALIFICATIONS, CAPITAL INVESTMENT, ALL OF THESE ARE THINGS THAT, UH, THAT YOU NEED TO CONSIDER IN YOUR INCENTIVE POLICY, LOCATION, TIMING, WHEN, HOW LONG ROI, UM, ARE YOU GOING TO DO IT FOR EXISTING BUSINESSES? YOU BETTER BE, YOU KNOW, WHEN THEY COME AND ASK YOU FOR MONEY FOR MAJOR EXPANSIONS.
IF YOU'RE DOING IT FOR FOLKS COMING IN FROM THE OUTSIDE, YOU BETTER BE DOING IT FOR THE FOLKS THAT ARE ALREADY HERE.
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT, CULTURAL FIT.
YOU KNOW, THERE'S, THERE'S A LOT OF PLACES THAT, UM, I REMEMBER DOING A, WE DID A PROJECT FOR COOPER TIRE.
IT WAS THE LARGEST INDUSTRIAL PROJECT IN THE UNITED STATES AT THE TIME.
AND BY THE WAY, IT NEVER HAPPENED.
BUT WE HAD A LOT OF FUN, UH, CARRYING THAT PROJECT AROUND THE COUNTRY.
AND WE WERE IN THIS, OUR SEARCH AREA WAS THIS CIRCLE THAT WENT FROM, UH, MIDDLE OF KENTUCKY ALL THE WAY OVER TO,
[00:35:01]
UH, KANSAS CITY AND THEN CUT THROUGH THIS PART OF THE STATE, NORTHERN LOUISIANA, ALL THE WAY TO THE CAROLINAS.SO WE WERE LOOKING IN THAT AREA AND WHEN, YOU KNOW, THERE WAS A NUMBER OF TIMES WE CAME TO THE COMMUNITY AND SAID, WE HAVE A TIRE PLANT.
UM, SO IT WAS NOT A CULTURAL FIT WITH SOME OF THE COMMUNITIES THAT WE SHOT IT AT THE TIME.
THERE'S, THERE'S COMMUNITIES THAT WALK AWAY FROM, UM, CERTAIN TYPES OF INVESTMENT THAT'S PROBABLY COMING A LITTLE MORE COMMON NOW THAN IT WAS 25 YEARS AGO WHEN WE HAD THAT PROJECT.
I WANTED TO LEAVE WITH YOU ALL.
UM, SOME EXAMPLE POINT SYSTEMS THAT ARE USED IN DETERMINING, UM, YOU KNOW, WHAT YOU SHOULD DO IN TERMS OF YOUR, UH, YOUR THREE 12 AGREEMENT, UH, NUMBER OF JOBS, THE QUALITY OF THE JOBS, WAGE LEVEL, CAPITAL INVESTMENT, ALL OF THOSE THINGS ARE, UM, YOU KNOW, QUANTIFIABLE, UH, WAYS OF ADDRESSING YOUR POLICY.
YOU KNOW, WHERE YOU CAN SAY, UM, IT AT LEAST IF YOU USE THIS KIND OF SCIENCE, UH, TO THOSE OUT THERE WHO MIGHT BE CRITICAL OF IT.
UH, IT'S RELATED TO THE CUT AND THE LEVEL OF CAPITAL INVESTMENT AND NUMBER OF JOBS, UM, EVEN BENEFITS, THOSE KINDS OF THINGS.
SO, UH, THIS IS AN EXAMPLE OF WHAT, UM, OTHER COMMUNITIES, COUNTIES, UM, AND EVEN STATES DO IN TERMS OF, UM, HOW THEY STRUCTURE THEIR INCENTIVE GUIDANCE.
UH, ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT IS, IS NOW USED IN A LOT OF THE EVALUATION A NUMBER OF LOCAL RESIDENTS HIRED.
UH, DOES IT FIT WITHIN THE SORT OF CLUSTER OR BUSINESS TYPE YOUR, YOUR MOST, UM, COMPETITIVE FOR, UH, AMONG THE COMMUNITIES IN YOUR COUNTY THAT ARE DOING ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT.
UM, IF YOU LOOK AT THE MIDDLE DOT POINT, RIGHT HAND SIDE EMAIL, UM, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT THAT'S GOING ON, AS YOU ALL KNOW, IS THE CAPITAL INVESTMENT OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS HAS RISEN ASTRONOMICALLY.
THE NUMBER OF JOBS CREATED HAS DROPPED PRECIPITOUSLY.
UM, YOU KNOW, YOU LOOK AT, UH, LIKE A DATA CENTER.
THERE WAS ONE THAT LOCATED IN GEORGETOWN, UH, OH FIVE YEARS AGO THAT ENDED UP WITH ABOUT 90 TO A HUNDRED JOBS, BUT THE AVERAGE WAGE WAS $120,000 A YEAR.
SO THAT HAD QUITE AN IMPACT, AN ECONOMIC IMPACT.
BUT DATA CENTERS ARE, YOU KNOW, GUYS WALKING AROUND GALS WALKING AROUND WITH, WITH, UH, WHITE COATS ON, LOOKING AT ROWS AND ROWS OF, OF MAINFRAME COMPUTERS, HIGHLY COMPENSATED, LOT OF PROPERTY TAX REVENUE, BUT NOT A LOT OF JOBS.
AND LET'S FACE IT, FOLKS, THAT'S THE FUTURE.
UM, THAT'S THE WAY MANUFACTURING IS GOING TO BE.
UH, AND IT'S, IT'S, IT'S HAPPENING, YOU KNOW, AS WE SIT HERE.
SO, UH, CAPITAL INVESTMENT HAS BECOME MORE OF A MORE IMPORTANT THAN JUST SIMPLY THE JOB RELATED GROWTH.
AND THAT'S JUST BECAUSE OF, UM, TECHNOLOGY, JUST GOBBLING UP JOBS.
UM, AGAIN, WHEN I WAS AT FANTAS 30 YEARS AGO, YOU KNOW, OUR TYPICAL PROJECT WAS MAYBE 20 TO 50 MILLION IN CAPITAL INVESTMENT.
UH, 300 TO SEVEN, 800 EMPLOYEES.
THAT SAME PROJECT NOW IS PROBABLY 150, 200 MILLION IN CAPITAL INVESTMENT, 200 EMPLOYEES, MAYBE EVEN LESS.
UM, UM, AGAIN, UH, THE MAIN CLUE, THE CONCLUSION I THINK I'D LIKE TO LEAVE YOU ALL WITH IS INCENTIVES MUST BE CENTERED ON THE ACTIVITY WHICH CREATES PRIMARY JOBS AND INVESTMENT AND BRINGS THOSE EXTERNAL FUNDS INTO THE REGION, INTO THE COUNTY, INTO THE CITY.
THAT MONEY THAT COMES FROM OUTSIDE TO PAY THE SALARIES TO PAY THE SUPPLIERS, UH, THAT CREATES THAT CHURN.
WE'RE PRO PUBLIC INVESTMENT, PROBABLY LOCAL CONTROL QUESTIONS.
I HAVE A LIST I'LL TRY TO ANSWER.
[00:40:09]
I'M HOPING THAT THIS WILL BE DISCUSSION FOR ALL OF US AND UM, I'M INTERESTED IN, I'M REALLY INTERESTED TO HEAR INPUT FROM HIS PRIVATE SPEAKING FROM YOU.CAN YOU, UM, CAN ANYBODY, LET'S START FROM THE STANCE.
WOULD IT MAKE SENSE FOR US TO PARTICIPATE IN SYDNEY? AND THAT COULD BE AN ABATEMENT B AND I THINK I WOULD INCLUDE UH, TINA FOR RETURN ZONE WHERE THE MAJOR PART OF THAT IS OUT.
IS THERE ANY REASON THAT WE SHOULD EVER, IS IT FAR? IS IT FAIR TO SAY THAT PARTICIPATING IN A TEAR FOR UTTERS THAT HAS THE BIG COMPONENT IS HOUSING? IS THAT FAIR TO SAY THAT THAT'S INCENTIVIZING? IT COULD BE AS MOST QUESTIONS ON ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT.
THEY'RE RELATIVE, YOU KNOW, UH, IN TERRELL WE'VE GOT A NUMBER OF OPPORTUNITIES.
SO RIGHT NOW WE'RE TRYING TO FIGURE OUT HOW WE COULD USE OPPORTUNITIES THOUGH A LITTLE BIT.
WELL, I DON'T KNOW IF EVERYBODY KNOWS WHO HE IS, BUT THIS IS SOMETHING NEW.
TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT WHAT THAT IS.
THOSE ARE AREAS THAT WERE CREATED BY THE 2017 TAX CUTS WHERE INVESTORS CAN TAKE CAPITAL GAINS AND THOSE CAPITAL GAINS IF THEY'RE REINVESTED INTO AN OPPORTUNITY FUND.
AND THESE FUNDS ARE CREATED IN THE PRIVATE MARKETS.
SO THESE FUNDS CAN INVEST IN PROJECTS AND THERE'S A WHOLE WIDE ARRAY OF PROJECTS THAT ARE ELIGIBLE IN A GEOGRAPHICAL AREA THAT'S DEFINED AS AN OPPORTUNITY ZONES.
AND THOSE ARE BASICALLY ECONOMICALLY DISTRESSED AREAS.
AND UH, THROUGH SOME KIND OF QUIRK OF FEDERAL BUREAUCRACY, THEY USE THE 2000 CENSUS AS SOON AS THE 2010 CENSUS.
AND SO IN TERRELL, WE'VE GOT A NUMBER OF AREAS THAT ARE DESIGNATED OPPORTUNITIES THOUGH.
SO IF ONE OF THESE FUNDS INVEST IN A PROJECT IN THERE AND LEAVES THEIR MONEY SEVEN TO 10 YEARS, THEY PAID VERY LITTLE IN CAPITAL GAINS TAX ON THEIR SALE AND ALL THE PROFIT THAT THEY MAKE THERE.
SO ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE'RE DOING STRATEGICALLY IS TO TRY TO FIGURE OUT HOW WE COULD COME UP WITH A HOUSING CONCEPT BECAUSE YOU HAVE TO LEAVE IT SEVEN YEARS.
SO JUST FROM A 30,000 FOOT LEVEL, WE'RE STARTING TO EXPLORE, COULD YOU DO A RENTAL HOME NEIGHBORHOOD WHERE YOU COULD TAKE PEOPLE THAT HAVE MARGINALLY BAD CREDIT, BUT THEY'VE GOT JOBS, THEY JUST, THEY NEED COACHING, THEY NEED MENTORING IN THE SOCIETY.
IS, IS THERE A WAY THAT THAT OPPORTUNITY FUND COULD WORK? SO BACK TO YOUR QUESTION WITH A TIF OR A TERRORS, UH, AGAIN, NOT TO BUILD LOW INCOME HOUSING, BUT ONE OF THE THINGS THAT KAUFMAN COUNTY IS GONNA NEED IS PEOPLE ARE GONNA COME HERE WHETHER WE MANAGE GROWTH OR NOT.
SO I APPLAUD THE COURT FOR THE BOND ISSUE THAT PASSED AND FOR MANAGING GROWTH, WE NEED TO BUILD HOUSING PRODUCT IN THAT MID PRICE RANGE.
AND AGAIN, I'M NOT TALKING ABOUT LOW INCOME HOUSING, I'M TALKING ABOUT WE'RE WORKING, PEOPLE CAN AFFORD IT.
AND SO SOMETIMES PARTICIPATING IN A TIF MAY BE ABLE TO GIVE THE DEVELOPER THE ABILITY TO GET THE LAND AND A LITTLE BETTER PRICE TO MAKE THE HOUSING NUMBERS WORK OUT SO THAT YOUR WORKFORCE CAN AFFORD TO LIVE THERE.
WHEN YOU DO THAT, THEN YOU ENHANCE THE MULTIPLIERS THAT CARLTON SHOWED EARLIER.
SHOULD WE, BUT SHOULD WE CONSIDER PARTICIPATING IN A TIF OR A TERS AS IN THE SAME FAMILY AS AN ABATEMENT? SHOULD WE CONSIDER THAT IN A SENSE AN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT INCENTIVE OR NOT? IS IT FOR HOUSING OR FOR JUST ANYTHING IS A TEMPORARY TERM ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT.
I WOULD BE CAREFUL ABOUT HOUSING THOUGH.
I MEAN, I, YOU KNOW, HE POINTED OUT I THINK CORRECTLY, UH, IF HE CAN DRIVE, UM, LOW INCOME HOUSING, UH, YEAH.
THEN MAYBE YOU OUGHT TO CONSIDER IT, BUT IT'S JUST THE NEXT SUBDIVISION THAT'S IN FORNEY.
UM, UNLESS YOU WANNA LIKE, YEAH, YEAH, YEAH, EXACTLY.
UNLESS YOU WANNA MAKE EVERY OTHER DEVELOPER, MAN, I MEAN, YOU'RE JUST OPENING A CAN OF WORMS THAT YOU DON'T WANT TO GET INTO JOB.
YOU KNOW, WE ALL HUNT INTO $4 MILLION.
[00:45:01]
IT MAKES NO SENSE TO ME.THERE'S NO WAY THAT THEY'RE GOING TO PRODUCE AND CAUSE THAT DRIVER FOR THE HOMES THAT THEY'RE DOING AND ALL WE'RE DOING IS PAYING THEM FOR THE NEXT 30 YEARS FOR THEIR DEVELOPMENT AND MAKING ALL THEIR MONEY.
Y'ALL DON'T WANT IT MEAN, WELL, THIS IS A, THIS IS SOMETHING THAT WE'RE GOING TO HAVE.
WE, WE, WE JUST HAD A SITUATION THAT CAME UP, UH, NOT THAT LONG AGO WHERE, UH, IT WAS A GREAT PROJECT, BUT HOW DO WE SAY YES TO ONE PARTICULAR REALLY GOOD PROJECT AND NO TO THE NEXT HOUSING PROJECTS? YES.
WELL, I THINK, I THINK, YOU KNOW, IT WAS SAID A LITTLE BIT EARLIER THAT, UM, THAT HOUSING IN GENERAL MIGHT NOT BE, UM, YOU KNOW, THE BEST APPLICATION.
BUT IF THERE'S TARGETED A TARGETED TYPE OF HOUSING, WHETHER THAT BE A GENUINELY IDENTIFIED, UH, MIDDLE INCOME HOUSING AS OPPOSED TO LOW, UH, LOW INCOME HOUSING.
AND, AND I THINK PEOPLE MIGHT BE SHOCKED AT WHAT MIDDLE INCOME HOUSING AND WHAT THAT DOLLAR AMOUNT ACTUALLY IS.
UH, BUT ALSO
UH, AS, AS IN MY ESTIMATION IS KIND OF THE SITUATION WE HAVE IN KAUFMAN COUNTY BECAUSE A TRUE HIGH END HOUSING, MOST OF THOSE PEOPLE, EVEN IF THEY WANT TO START FOUR YEAR CARE OR SOMEWHERE, THEY LIVE IN ROCKWELL DAILY BECAUSE WE DON'T HAVE THAT KIND OF, UM, READILY AVAILABLE.
THE ARGUMENT THAT THIS DEVELOPER MADE TO US WAS THAT THAT SUPPORTING THEIR PROJECT WAS ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT BECAUSE IT WOULD, KEN SAID IF SOMEBODY'S WANTING TO COME AND START UP 50 OR A HUNDRED PERSON MACHINING BUSINESS OR SOMETHING, THEY WANTED TO LIVE, UM, YOU KNOW, IN COCHRAN COUNTY, JUST PUT IT HERE IN KAUFMAN AND, AND THEIR SPOUSE OR WHEREVER IT WANTS TO LIVE IN, UH, 800 OR $900,000 HOUSE, YOU KNOW, ON A GOLF COURSE DEVELOPMENT OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT.
AND, AND THE OTHER, UH, THE OTHER THING THAT WE LEASED WHILE THAT PROJECT DIDN'T HAPPEN, THE OTHER THING THAT WE AT LEAST FACTORED INTO THAT IN OUR DISCUSSIONS WAS WE DID IDENTIFY SOME STANDARDS SO THAT WE WOULDN'T BE OPENING THE DOOR TO THE VERY NEXT, YOU KNOW, ROUTINE HOUSING DEVELOPER.
WE, WE AT LEAST STARTED TO IDENTIFY SOME, SOME ESTABLISHED STANDARDS SO THAT WHEN THE NEXT GUY CAME ALONG WE COULD SAY, YOU'RE RIGHT, WE DID OVER HERE AND WE'RE PROBABLY WILLING TO DO IT AGAIN.
IF YOU MEET THESE SAME STANDARDS OR EXCEED STANDARDS IN TERMS OF PARK SPACE, VALUE, THE HOSE VALUE, THE DEVELOPMENT ENTITIES AND THAT KIND OF STUFF, BUT THAT'S A SLIPPERY SLOPE TO BE TAPPED TO SOME KIND OF, YOU KNOW, GET HER MOTORS, COMES AND SAYS WE WANT TO BUILD A PLANT, AND THEN THE SAME DEVELOPER SAYS, I'M ALSO GOING TO BE ABLE TO HOUSING NEIGHBORHOODS.
NOW WE'RE TALKING THAT ZONE COULDN'T BE USED AND YOU COULD SAY, WELL WE'LL GIVE YOU 30% OR 70% ON THE PLANNERS.
NO, THAT'S A DIFFERENT KIND OF STORY.
BUT I MEAN, YOU KNOW, I WOULD AGREE WITH THAT.
AND ON THE HIGH END HOUSING, THIS IS JUST ME PERSONALLY, I THINK THE HIGH END HOUSING WILL COME WITH THE PRIMARY JOB ALLOWED.
WHAT WILL MAKE YOUR ECONOMY ROBUST? IS THAT JUST LIKE YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT, IF YOU, IN TERRELL WE IMPORT JOBS.
WE'VE GOT 18,000 RESIDENTS, WE'VE GOT ROUGHLY 12,000 JOBS.
WE HAVE A REALLY STRONG MANUFACTURING BASE, WE HAVE STRONG DISTRIBUTION BASE AND, AND A LOT OF THOSE JOBS ARE GOOD PAYING WORKERS.
WE'VE GOT EMPLOYERS NOW THAT CANNOT FILL 20 AND $30 AN HOUR JOBS RIGHT NOW.
AND SO HOUSING THAT WOULD GO ALONG TO GIVE PEOPLE THE ABILITY TO WORK CLOSE TO THOSE JOBS MEANS THEY'RE ALSO GOING TO BE SHOPPING STORES AND THEY'RE GOING TO BE PURCHASING FROM YOUR DOWNTOWN MERCHANTS.
AND MY SUGGESTION IN DESIGNING A POLICY IS THAT YOU DESIGNED IT RIGID ENOUGH TO PROTECT YOURSELF BECAUSE YOU KNOW, AND MAYBE I'M A BAD ECONOMIC DEVELOPER, BUT MY JOB IS NOT TO MAKE MONEY FOR EVERY DEVELOPER THAT COMES ALONG BECAUSE THEY'RE LOOKING OUT FOR THEMSELVES AND MY JOB IS TO LOOK OUT FOR THE COMMUNITY AND WHAT'S BEST FOR THE COMMUNITY LONG TERM AND YOUR SHORT TERM PROFIT MIGHT NOT BE BEST
[00:50:01]
FOR MY COMMUNITY LONG TERM.AND THEN AS YOU LOOK AT THE POLICY, YOU BUILD ONE STRONG ENOUGH TO PROTECT YOU AS AN ELECTED BODY FROM THE CONSTANT HANDOUT, BUT YET GIVE YOURSELF ENOUGH FLEXIBILITY WHEN THE RIGHT PROJECT COMES ALONG AND YOU COLLECTIVELY GO, WOW, THAT MAKES, THAT MAKES SENSE.
CHECKS THE BOXES FOR WHAT WE WANT AND NOW THE ABILITY TO ADD THEY THAT RIGHT.
IN THAT INSTANCE, IT'S ALWAYS SEEMS LIKE EVERY PROJECT HAS TO STAND ON ITS OWN MERITS AND WHATEVER YOUR POLICY IS, I MEAN, YOU'RE NOT HAVING A POLICY.
UH, OUR SCHEDULE IS FOR SEVEN YEARS.
UH, OUR MAINTENANCE SCHEDULE IS SEVEN YEARS, ALTHOUGH WE ACTUALLY HAVE ANOTHER PART WHERE IT SAYS NO MORE THAN 10 YEARS.
BUT UH, SO IF WE WERE SEVEN YEARS, IF THAT'S OUR POLICY, THERE'S A LOT OF PROJECTS THAT WOULD COME IN HERE THAT WE'D BE HAPPY TO DO A 10 YEAR.
I MEAN, WE COULD HAVE A PROJECT, SO EVERY DEAL HAS TO TALK TO EVERY PROJECT AND ALMOST BE EVALUATED ON ITS OWN MERIT.
AND I WANT TO ASK ABOUT WHAT DO YOU CALL IT, THE COMMUNITIES ON THE NEW ONE, UH, ON THE, ON THE, ON THE REINVESTMENT.
AND THEY CAN TAKE THAT MONEY AND INVEST IT.
CAN THEY MOVE IT TO ANYWHERE OR IS IT JUST YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT THAT HE'S TALKING ABOUT THE IRS
WELL WHAT YOU DO IS YOU CREATE PROJECTS.
THE OTHER SIDE OF THAT COIN THOUGH IS THAT THERE COULD BE PEOPLE IN OREGON THAT HAVE CAPITAL GAINS, THE NEED TO INVEST AND THEY CAN INVEST IN AND I GET IT.
NO IN IN WHAT SENSE? NOT ON US.
THAT'S NOT A MUST GIVE THEM SNACKS FOR THEM OFTEN.
WHAT'S UNCLEAR IS UH, OUR OPPORTUNITY ZONES REALLY GOING TO BE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DRIVERS.
I THINK IT'S, I THINK WHAT RAY'S TRYING TO DO IN TERRELL IS HE'S TRYING TO MAKE THEM POSSIBLY AN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DRIVER OR ARE THEY SIMPLY DOING TO BE PLACES WHERE PEOPLE CAN PARK CASH.
YOU KNOW, ANY OF ALL HAVE, I DON'T KNOW IF ANY OF Y'ALL HAVE EVER OWNED LIKE RANCH LAND, SOLD IT AND THEN BOUGHT OTHER RANCH, ANOTHER RANCH.
I'VE DONE THIS 10 31 EXCHANGE.
THIS IS LIKE A GIANT NATIONWIDE 10 31 EXCHANGE.
YOU DON'T SEE IT AS A, YOU DON'T SEE OPPORTUNITY ZONES.
I SEE WHAT IT CAN BE, BUT THIS NOTION OF THAT IT'S GOING TO BE THIS FEDERAL GOVERNMENT DRIVEN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT.
I REALLY DON'T BECAUSE AGAIN, IT'S THE FOLKS THAT ARE OUT THERE, I GOT A HOOK ON IT.
RIGHT? THAT'S THE REASON IT'S THERE.
SOMEBODY, YEAH, IT WILL, IT WILL RESULT IN JOB CREATION OR SOMEBODY THAT THE GOVERNMENT WOULD HAVE NEVER, IT NEVER WOULD'VE HAPPENED.
IS IT SOMETHING, IT WILL CREATE PRIMARY, IT WILL HELP CREATE PRIMARY JOBS, BUT THAT'S NOT THE FOCAL POINT OF THAT.
I WANT TO TALK ABOUT SOMETHING THAT'S COME UP AND I WANT TO ENGAGE THE APPRAISAL OFFICE IN THIS A LITTLE BIT.
UM, THERE'S THREE WAYS THAT WE CAN INCENTIVIZE A PROJECT, UM, REUSING A BASEMENT AND USE A THREE 81 AGREEMENT.
UM, OR WE CAN USE SOMETHING I JUST LEARNED ABOUT OR WE CAN USE PAYMENT IN LIEU OF TAXES.
WE CAN USE A PILOT OR, SO MY IMPRESSION ABOUT ABATEMENT IS ABATEMENTS TEND TO BE A NIGHTMARE IN THE APPRAISAL PROCESS.
AND IS THAT TRUE? AND THAT MIGHT BE A TAX QUESTION TOO.
WE HAD A PROBLEM A YEAR AGO WHEN I FIRST GOT HERE, I HEARD OF AN ABATEMENT THAT WAS GIVEN BY THE COUNTY.
I THINK THAT JUST AFFECTED, THEY BAITED THE M AND O TEXAS AND NOT THE THE ITEST TEXAS.
OUR SYSTEM ISN'T PROGRAMMED TO DO THAT.
WE CAN'T SPLIT, WE CAN SPLIT THAT OUT IN OUR SYSTEM SO THAT IF WE EVEN CUT THE AMOUNT OF THEIR VALUE BY THE EVADED AMOUNT AND STILL SPREAD IT BASED ON THOSE RATES.
SO IT WASN'T A TRUE IN MANOA ABATEMENT, IT HAD TO BE DONE AT THE TAX OFFICE, I GUESS.
BUT I THINK OUR SYSTEM HAS, HAS BEEN CORRECTED SO THEY CAN DO THAT NOW.
IT'S JUST HARDER TO MAINTAIN FOR US.
SO A BATEMAN'S AREN'T A PROBLEM BECAUSE WE HAVE THIS SYSTEM THAT WILL HANDLE THEM.
[00:55:01]
THAT I'VE EVER DEALT WITH ARE INDUSTRIAL PROPERTIES THAT ARE HANDLED BY AN OUTSIDE FOR OUR CAPITAL APPRAISAL HANDLES OURS.THEY HANDLE THE BAKING PORTION OF IT TOO.
SO FOR US, IT'S NOT A PROBLEM.
WHATEVER YOU DECIDE, WE'RE GOING TO FIND A WAY TO HANDLE IT.
SO A CROCKER, WHY WOULD WE DO AN ABATEMENT AS OPPOSED TO REALLY TWO QUESTIONS.
POINT IS WHY DON'T WE, IF WE DON'T HAVE TO HAVE REBECCA, WE ONLY HAVE TO HAVE THREE ONE IN OUR POLICY.
WHY IS IT IN THERE? AND THEN THE OTHER QUESTION THAT THE FURTHER PART OF THE QUESTION IS WHY WOULD WE DO AN ABATEMENT INSTEAD OF A THREE 81 WHICH IS SO MUCH MORE OR A PILOT, WHICH IS SO MUCH MORE STRAIGHTFORWARD.
SO THE FIRST ANSWER IS THAT UM, THE COUNTY WAS BEING APPROACHED BY MULTIPLE PEOPLE THAT WANTED 30 YEAR TYPE AGREEMENTS AND WE DID NOT HAVE IT IN OUR POLICY THAT WE WERE RESTRICTED TO 10 YEARS IN THE COURT.
THEIR THINKING AT THAT TIME WAS THAT WE REALLY ONLY WANTED A 10 YEAR MAX AND NOT A PROJECT BEYOND THAT.
AND SO THAT'S WHY WE INTEGRATED THEM TOGETHER.
YOU GUYS ARE MORE THAN WELCOME TO SEPARATE THEM BACK OUT AS LONG AS WE HAVE THE THREE 12 AS FAR AS YOUR SECOND QUESTION ON THE ABATEMENT FOR THREE 12 IT HAS TO BE IN A REINVESTMENT ZONE.
A CITY CAN CREATE THAT OR THE COUNTY CAN CREATE THAT, BUT IT'S A LOT MORE STEPS THAN DOING THE REBATE.
AND THEN ON THE PILOT YOU, THAT IS A TERM WITHIN THE AGREEMENT.
SO YOU HAVE TO USE A VEHICLE, THE THREE 81 OR THE ABATEMENT, AND THEN YOU STICK THAT PILOT TERM IN THERE SO IT DOESN'T STAND ON ITS OWN AS A SEPARATE AGREEMENT.
SO IS THERE ANY REASON WHY IF WE HAD A PROJECT AND AS FAR AS I CAN TELL THE DEVELOPER, THEY DON'T CARE IF IT'S IN THREE 81 OR AN ABATEMENT.
UH, AND MORE AND MORE COMMUNITIES AND COUNTIES ARE DOING THREE EIGHTIES AND THREE USED TO BE JUST BECAUSE OF, UM, FLEXIBILITY AND IT'S JUST EASIER, YOU KNOW, IF YOU GO INTO THE CODE, UM, THE THREE 80, I THINK IT'S LIKE THREE PARAGRAPHS AND IT'S LIKE LITERALLY WHAT THE MIND CAN CONCEIVE, YOU CAN DO UNDER THREE 83 81.
AND, UM, WHEREAS AS SHE JUST POINTED OUT, YOU KNOW, YOU GOTTA HAVE A REINVESTMENT ZONE.
YOU'VE GOT TO UPDATE YOUR POLICIES.
YOU'VE GOT TO DO THIS UNDER CHAPTER THREE 12, YOU KNOW, THERE, THERE'S A LOT MORE OF THE LAW.
YOU HAVE TO MEET WITH YOUR STANDARD ABATEMENT UNDER CHAPTER THREE, 12 OF THE TAX CODE.
JERRY'S ADDED A BUNCH OF NOTICE REQUIREMENTS TOO.
I MEAN I THINK IT'S LIKE A SIX OR SEVEN STEP PROCESS TO GET IT.
IT'S 30 DAY, UH, IN, IN WE'RE TRYING TO BAKE IT.
AND THE ABATEMENT PROCESS IS JUST VERY STRUCTURED.
I MEAN OUR POLICY IS 11 PAGES LONG AND ALL THAT SORT OF THING.
UH, SO IF WE WERE JUST DOING THREE, ANY ONE AGREEMENTS THAT THEY HAVE A SAMPLE BUT TOTALLY DIFFERENT.
YOU HAVE TO POST YOUR THREE 12 POLICY ON YOUR WEBSITE.
BUT IT'S NOT THE SAME WHAT THE REBATE AGREEMENT.
THE TEXAS SENATE IS NOT FRIENDLY TO TAX INCENTIVES BASICALLY.
SO THE BILL THAT CAME OUT OF THE HOUSE AND WENT TO THE SENATE, UH, INCLUDED A LOT OF THE THINGS THAT SHE JUST MENTIONED, LIKE THE 30 DAY WAITING PERIOD, UH, POSTING IT ON A WEBSITE.
IT WAS, IT WAS DONE LAST SPRING, BUT UM, YOU KNOW, IN ORDER TO GET THREE 12 BACK IN OR HAVE IT REAUTHORIZED, OUR LITTLE GROUP THAT WORKS WITH A COALITION OF, OF, UH, BUSINESS GROUPS BASICALLY HAD TO GO WITH WHAT THE SENATE WANTED TO DO AND THEN IT WAS PASSED OUT IN THE CENTER.
SO, UH, YOU KNOW, THE NEXT THING IS GOING TO HAPPEN PROBABLY IF THE, IF THE SENATE STAYS THE SAME IS THEY'LL START GOING AFTER BRADY ONE AGREEMENTS AND TIGHTENING THOSE UP.
I CAN SEE THAT HAPPENING MAYBE EVEN NEXT SESSION.
DO YOU HAVE ANY, AS A PRACTITIONER, DO YOU HAVE ANY INPUT ON REWARD VERSUS, WELL, TYPICALLY I'VE USED THREE ENTITIES BECAUSE IT'S LOCAL SALES TAX.
NOW I'VE NEVER DONE A THREE 81 WITH THE COUNTY BECAUSE WHEN YOU DO AN ABATEMENT AND AS YOU KNOW FROM OUR CONVERSATIONS, EVEN WITH AN ABATEMENT, AS A PRACTITIONER, YOU KNOW, MY JOB IS TO DO WHAT'S BEST FOR THE COMMUNITY.
AND SO, UH, IF I, WHEN I COME TO YOU FOR A TAX ABATEMENT, I'M GOING TO ASK FOR AS LITTLE AS I CAN GET AWAY WITH TO DO THE DEAL.
BECAUSE, UH, I THINK THAT BUSINESSES THAT WE DO NEED
[01:00:01]
TO PAY RUBS.IT'S I ONE OF THE WEIRD DEAL, I GOT MY PROPERTY TAX BILL AND I HAD NO PROBLEM WITH SERIOUSLY WITH MY PROPERTY TAX BILL BECAUSE I THINK
I, I THINK THAT THE SCHOOL DOES A GOOD JOB, THE COMMUNITY.
SO I DO NOT MIND PAYING MY PROPERTY TAX BILL.
THE STUFF I SAID TO WASHINGTON BROTHER STUFF I SAID TO WASHINGTON, I HAVE A LITTLE BIT DIFFERENT TAKE ON THAT ONE.
AND SO AS A PRACTITIONER, I THINK ABATEMENTS ARE VALUE BECAUSE AS CARLTON SAID EARLIER, TEXAS IS A PROPERTY TAX HEAVY STATE.
AND SO IF I'M COMPETING AGAINST ANOTHER STATE THAT HAS INCOME TAX VERSUS PROPERTY TAX, WELL THINK ABOUT IT.
IF, IF I'M A BUSINESS AND MY EMPLOYEES ARE GOING TO PAY INCOME TAX, WELL THAT DOESN'T COME OUT OF MY POCKETS AS MUCH.
BUT IF I LOCATE IT TEXAS, WELL I CAN'T PUSH MY PERSONAL PROPERTY TAX OF INVENTORY TAX OFF ALL MY EMPLOYEES THERE.
SO I THINK ABATEMENTS HAVE VALUE AND AS I SAID EARLY, HAVING A POLICY THAT'S APPROVED OF THAT GIVES YOU FLEXIBILITY BECAUSE QUITE FRANKLY THEY'RE GOING GONNA BE DEALS GOVERNMENT IF YOU LIKE, THAT MAKES NO SENSE.
NO HOW, AND EVERYBODY THAT COMES BEFORE YOU USED GO TO THINK THEY'RE THE ONE DIFFERENT AND THEN THEY'RE THE ONE YOU REALLY SHOULD, SHOULD BEND THE RULES ZONE.
BUT AT THE SAME TIME, IF YOU'VE GOT ENOUGH FLEXIBILITY WHEN SOMEBODY BRINGS YOU A DEAL THAT YOU AS A COLLECTIVE BODY SAY, OKAY, THAT'S GOOD FOR THE COMMUNITY.
WE'RE GOING TO GIVE UP PART OF OUR PROPERTY TAX.
SO MANY OF THE STATE, THE LONGEST YOU CAN DO, IT'S 10 YEARS, YOUR POLICY SEVEN.
UH, I TYPICALLY TRY TO KEEP MY REQUEST TO YOU TO FIVE B BECAUSE I WANT GOOD ROADS IN THE COUNTY AND I WANT GOOD COUNTY SERVICES SO THAT YOU CAN LOOK AND GO, OKAY, WE'LL GIVE UP OUR MONEY FOR FIVE YEARS, BUT THIS HAS GOT VIABILITY DOWN THE ROAD AND WE'LL MAKE OUR MONEY BACK.
I CAN'T GIVE THEM LONG TERM IS WHEN IT'S UP MY MOOD THAT CAN HAPPEN.
AND SO FIRES ARE SHORTER THAN THE CITIES.
AT LEAST WE'RE GOING TO GET SOME OF THE MONEY BACK AND WHEN THEIR CITIES RUN OUT, THEN AT LEAST WE GET, AND THAT GOES INTO THAT EVALUATION PROCESS.
YOU KNOW, WHERE YOU ALL CAN SAY, YOU KNOW, THIS COMPANY IS GOING TO PUT 200 MILLION HERE AND THEY'RE PAYING THEM.
YOU KNOW, THEY'RE PROBABLY GOING TO PLANNING ON BEING HERE MORE THAN THAN 10 YEARS OR SEVEN YEARS.
AND UH, BUT UH, BUT YOU'RE GOING TO COME ACROSS PROJECTS WHERE THEY'RE GOING TO BE A LOT SHAKIER THAN THAT.
AND THAT'S WHERE YOU ALL HAVE THE POWER TO SAY NO IF, IF, IF YOU CHOOSE TO DO SO, THAT'S THE, OH YEAH.
I'LL BE HONEST WITH YOU, I DON'T WANT TO STAKE MY REPUTATION ON SOME GUY THAT'S NOT GOING TO COME AND STAY.
AM I GOING TO PROMISE THAT WE'LL BE A HUNDRED PERCENT PERFECT? NO, BUT YOU KNOW, I'M ANSWERABLE TO THE COMMUNITY.
AND AGAIN, MY JOB IS TO HELP TERRELL BE A BETTER PLACE LONG AFTER I'M GONE AND DONE.
HERE'S THE BEAUTY OF A DYNAMIC ECONOMY TOO IS YOU ALL CAN SAY NO, NO, I DON'T KNOW.
YEAH, I MEAN THERE WAS A, YOU KNOW, I'VE SEEN TIMES IN OUR RECENT HISTORY, UH, IN TEXAS WHERE, YOU KNOW, YOU WERE, YOU WERE REALLY, REALLY TEMPTED OR WANTED TO SAY YES BECAUSE YOU NEEDED SOMETHING TO HAPPEN.
AND, UH, YOU KNOW, IN A STATE WITH 3.1% UNEMPLOYMENT, UH, IN A, IN A DYNAMIC REGION LIKE THIS ONE, YOU CAN, YOU CAN BE CHOOSY, UH, FROM ONE OF THE THINGS THAT'S GOING ON IN OUR MIND, AT LEAST MY OBSERVATION IS, AND RAY MAY ARGUE WITH ME, BUT IT SEEMS LIKE WE ARE WAY OUT OF KILTER ON THE POPULATION GROWTH COMPARED TO JOB CREATION.
I MEAN, OUR POPULATION IS GROWING LIKE CRAZY AND WE ARE 99% OF IT.
COUNTY ARE GOING TO BE WORKING IN THE METAL PLATES.
WE'RE NOT WORKING ON THE CLUBS, THE JOBS, HOUSING MISMATCH.
SO WHAT, UH, UH, DO YOU HAVE ANY THOUGHTS ABOUT, I MEAN, W ONE OF THE THINGS THAT, I MEAN, WHAT, WHAT COULD
[01:05:01]
NOT JUST THE COUNTY ITSELF DO, BUT WHAT COULD WE ENCOURAGE THE CITIES TO DO WITH US AS FAR AS CREATING AN ENVIRONMENT FOR JOB CREATION? I MEAN, HELPING THEM CREATE OR IS TO CREATE INDUSTRIAL PARKS WITH THE INFRASTRUCTURE IN PLACE OR WHAT OTHER IDEAS? I THINK IT JUST, IT, EVERYBODY NEEDS TO UNDERSTAND THAT THE 80 SALES TAX COMMUNITIES NEED TO UNDERSTAND WHAT THEY CAN DO, UM, WITHIN THEIR JURISDICTIONS AND IN PERHAPS SOME THOUGHT OUGHT TO BE GIVEN TO WHAT IS IN THE METROPLEX REGION THAT DOESN'T NEED TO BE ON LBJ.FREEWAY, FOR EXAMPLE, UM, EMPLOYERS OR EMPLOYEES, YOU, AND I'M NOT SAYING TO DO A BEGGAR THY NEIGHBOR KIND OF EFFORT OVER THERE.
I DON'T, I DON'T AGREE WITH THAT.
BUT IF YOU'RE PREPARED TO UNDERSTAND THE NEEDS OF A COMPANY, AND I, I'M JUST THINKING OUT LOUD HERE.
SO THAT, THAT MIGHT BE LOCATED ON THE LBJ FREEWAY.
THAT DOESN'T NEED TO BE THERE.
MAYBE IT'S SOME SORT OF INSURANCE CLAIMS PROCESSING OR SOMETHING.
IT'S A, IT'S, IT'S WHITE COLLAR, BUT IT'S, UH, IT DOESN'T NEED TO BE IN A, AN EXPENSIVE GLASS OFFICE BUILDING ON THE LBJ FREEWAY, BUT COULD BE, UM, YOU KNOW, LOCATED, UH, YOU KNOW, AS XRB HAVE BECOME SUBURBIA, IT COULD BE LOCATED IN A MORE MODEST PRICED SMALL OFFICE BUILDING ON ONE OF THE GATEWAYS INTO KAUFFMAN KENNAN'S ONE 75, 80, 20 SOMEWHERE ELSE.
I MEAN, YOU'RE GETTING TO BE AT THAT POINT IN YOUR HISTORY TO WHERE THAT KIND OF, UM, VIEW OF WHAT CAN HAPPEN HERE NEEDS TO TAKE PLACE.
YOU KNOW, YOU'RE, YOU'RE KIND OF LIKE ROUND ROCK 1990 PROBLEM.
THE PROBLEM WITH THAT IS THAT, UH, AT THE COUNTY LEVEL, WE REALLY DON'T HAVE ANY SORT OF A DYNAMIC REPRESENTATION, YOU KNOW, IN THAT, UH, IN THAT ARENA.
I MEAN, WITH THE, WITH THE WAY FORCED ANNEXATION IS IN TEXAS NOW, BASICALLY THE CITIES BY LARGER ON LANDLOCKED IN THE, WHAT THEY HAVE NOW.
AND SO THE, YOU KNOW, THE, THE, THE AREA OF GROUND THAT'S AVAILABLE IS LARGELY RELATED TO THE COUNTY, BUT THE COUNTY DOESN'T HAVE AN EDC.
WE DON'T HAVE, UH, WE DON'T HAVE DYNAMIC, UH, PROACTIVE EFFORT TO IDENTIFY AND, AND BRING DESIRABLE THAT, THAT KIND OF DESIRABLE OPERATION INTO THE COUNTY.
MY DAD WAS A COMMISSIONER FOR 12 YEARS AND YOU KNOW, HE OF COURSE WAS ALWAYS TALKING TO ME ABOUT ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND HE WOULD ALWAYS SAY, DAMN, THERE'S, THERE'S ONLY SO MUCH WE CAN DO.
AND I THINK THAT'S WHAT YOU'RE POINTING OUT.
YOU KNOW, I'M AT, MAYBE YOU ALL COULD BE THE THOUGHT LEADERS ON THIS, THE DRIVERS, THE, OR WE COULD CONSIDER DEVELOPING SOME KIND OF A COUNTY INVOLVED ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT FUNCTION AS OPPOSED TO REALLY JUST BEING A REACTIVE ORGANIZATION THAT WE ARE NOW, WHICH AS YOU POINTED OUT AT THE START OF THIS CONVERSATION, MOST OF OUR DEVELOPMENT IN THE LAST SEVEN YEARS OR SO HAS BEEN RESIDENTIAL, YOU KNOW, AND SO, AND, AND FRANKLY, MOST OF THAT IS COMMUTER SUBURBIA, GOING BACK TO THE METROPLEX.
AND IN MY VIEW, ALL OF THOSE PEOPLE, THEY STILL GO BACK TO DALLAS.
THEY EAT, THEY GO BACK TO DALLAS TO BUY, UH, YOU KNOW, TO GO TO NORTH PARK OR WHAT HAVE YOU.
SO WE, THAT'S THE ONLY DEVELOPMENT THAT THAT SEEMS TO BE ROUTINELY, UM, INTERESTED IN, IN WHAT'S IN THE COUNTY.
ACTUALLY, YOU ALL, UH, AS I GAVE YOU THE EXAMPLE OF ROUNDROCK, Y'ALL ARE PROBABLY IN CENTRAL TEXAS, MORE LIKE BASS DRUM AND BASS.
BASTROP COUNTY, VERY, VERY FEW JOBS AND THEY WOKE UP ONE DAY, THEY THOUGHT GETTING A HOME DEPOT ON THE MAJOR ROAD IN THE VAST DROP 10, 15 YEARS AGO.
THEY THOUGHT, WOW, WE ARE BIG TIME.
WE'VE, WE HAVE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT NOW.
AND THEY, THEY COMPLETELY MISSED A HUGE OPPORTUNITY.
[01:10:01]
YOU ALL HAVEN'T, YOU ALL HAVE A BASE HERE FROM WHICH TO ADDRESS THAT HOUSING JOBS MISMATCH.ROUND ROCK 1990 HAD ALL OF THESE, UM, MUD DISTRICTS THAT HAD THESE OUTRAGEOUS TAXES THAT AT THE TIME, AND WHAT ARE WE GOING TO DO? WELL, RAILROADS GOT REALLY LUCKY WITH A LITTLE COMPANY CALLED DELL COMPUTER.
AND THEN DELL DROVE A LOT OF WHAT HAPPENED AND THEN THEY ENDED UP REALLY BEING ABLE TO DRESS, ADDRESS THE HOUSING JOBS MISMATCH.
DELL HAS SHRUNK AND SHRUNK AND SHRUNK AND SHRUNK.
AND NOW ROUNDROCK HAS BECOME AGGRESSIVE AGAIN BECAUSE THEY LOST A LOT OF PRIMARY JOBS BECAUSE OF, OF, OF DEAL SHRINKING.
SO, YOU KNOW, Y'ALL WERE, YOU KNOW, MAYBE ONE OF THE THINGS YOU COULD DO IS Y'ALL COULD BE THE, THE, THE LEAD STRATEGISTS, MAYBE YOUR, YOUR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT EFFORTS IS GETTING EVERYBODY INTO THE SAME ROOM TO TALK.
MAYBE IT IS FORMULATING A COUNTY WIDE STRATEGY.
UH, MAYBE IT'S SIMPLY FACILITATING, UH, EVERYBODY TO GET INTO THE SAME ROOM AND TALK ABOUT THE ISSUES TO ADDRESS.
WHAT I THINK IS, YOU KNOW, Y'ALL HAVE CORRECTLY IDENTIFIED THIS MISMATCH BETWEEN JOBS, UH, JOBS THAT ARE HERE IN HOUSING.
HOW DO YOU FIND THAT? HOW DO YOU FIND THOSE, THOSE POTENTIAL OPPORTUNITIES FOR, YOU KNOW, I DON'T KNOW, YOU KNOW, DELL BATTERY MANUFACTURING PLAN OR YOU KNOW, CLAIMS PROCESSING CENTER.
AND TALK ABOUT HOW THAT PROCESS WORKS BECAUSE THAT'S WHAT WE DO.
I'M TALKING ABOUT HOW DO WE DO IT WELL FOR THE CA, HERE'S THE DEAL WITH THE, TO MAYBE ADDRESS SOME OF YOUR CONCERNS REGARDLESS OF WHERE IT GOES, WHETHER IT'S IN 40 OR KIM OR KAUFMAN OR TERRELL.
IT GOES ONTO THE COUNTIES TAX ROLLS.
SO IT GOES IN INTO YOUR COFFERS AND, AND YOU MAKE A GREAT POINT ABOUT ANNEXATION.
THERE IS ONE GOOD WORK AROUND, UH, THE LESS THE LEGISLATURE CLOSES IT.
BUT LET'S SAY THAT I'VE GOT LAND OUTSIDE OF TERRELL THAT WE CANNOT ANNEX.
NOW, HOWEVER, IF I GO RECRUIT AN INDUSTRIAL BUYER AS PART OF MY DEAL, VOLUNTARY ANNEXATION CAN ABSOLUTELY BE A NEGOTIATED POINT OF ANY INCENTIVES SO THAT WE NOW PUT THAT IN THE CITY AND COURSE, KIM KAUFMAN CRANDALL, EVERYBODY CAN DO THE SAME THING.
UH, I DO THINK TO CARLTON'S POINT ABOUT COMMUNICATION AND COMMISSIONER BARBARA AND JUDGE RICHARDS WILL TELL YOU THAT IT'S TERRIBLE.
THE BEST THING WE HAVE GOING IS OUR TUESDAY MORNING MEETING BECAUSE THE ENTITIES THAT WE HAVE, THE SCHOOL DISTRICT, THE CITY, THE COUNTY LEADERS, THE CHAMBER AND THE EDC, WE HAVE COFFEE AND DONUTS ON TUESDAY MORNING.
AND, AND THAT'S NOT THE IMPORTANT PART.
IT'S THE, I CAN GRAB THE JUDGE SINCE THEY HAVE FIVE MINUTES TO ASK YOU ABOUT SOMETHING OR COMMISSIONER, I CAN GET RID OF CARMONA.
AND SO IF WE HAVE THE COMPETENT COUNTY LEADERSHIP COUNCIL, SO WE'VE ALREADY GOT SOME FORM OF A MECHANISM THAT YOU DON'T EVEN HAVE TO REINVENT THE WHEEL.
WE CAN JUST IMPROVE OUR COMMUNICATION IN THERE AND, AND WE CAN WORK THIS YEAR, I'M CHAIR OF TEAM TEXAS.
IT'S A STATEWIDE MARKETING ORGANIZATION THROUGH THE TEXAS ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COUNCIL.
BELIEVE ME, I'M COMPETING AGAINST LUCK OR TYLER TO GET A BUSINESS TO TERRELL, BUT AT THE SAME TIME, OUR NUMBER ONE GOAL IS TO GET THEM TO TEXAS.
AND WHILE I CAN COMPETE AGAINST, AND FRED BULLET KAUFMAN, I WANT TO SEE A BUSINESS IN KAUFMAN COUNTY AS OPPOSED TO SOME OTHER COUNTY BECAUSE IT BENEFITS OUR RESIDENTS AND IT CREATES JOBS FOR OUR PEOPLE.
AND PRETTY SOON WE DON'T HAVE TO HAVE PEOPLE GO TO NORTH.
ONE OF THE THINGS WE COULD PROMOTE AS A COUNTY, I MEAN THIS IS COUNTY WIDE AND I DON'T WANT TO HAVE TO GO BACK AND DO A REVERSE COMMUNITY.
YOU KNOW, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT MAYBE JUST TELL ME IF I'M WRONG, BIGGEST CONCERN OR BIGGEST NUMBER, THE TOP QUESTION THAT EVERYBODY ASKS ME TO LOOK AT RELOCATE IS WORKFORCE.
WHAT DOES THE AVAILABLE WORKFORCE IN A LOT OF PLACES IN KAUFMAN COUNTY DON'T HAVE GIRLS CIRCLE AROUND KEENAN UPPER CRANDALL OR
[01:15:01]
THEY DON'T HAVE A SIGNIFICANT WORKFORCE THERE, BUT WE CAN DRAW WHAT YOU COULD DRAW.AS YOU KNOW WITH THE DIVERSE COMMUNITY, THERE'S SOMETHING THAT'S LIKE, THAT'S SOMETHING THAT UNIVERSAL, IT'S WE'RE, WE'RE TO RUN AN ADS, TERRIBLE RUNNING ADS RIGHT NOW TO WORK IN TERRELL AND I WILL TELL YOU FROM MY OWN DEAL, FOR THE FIRST TIME IN MY WORKING CAREER IN 30 PLUS YEARS, I'M SEVEN MINUTES TO THE OFFICE AND IN ONE YEAR I'VE GOTTEN TO THE POINT THAT I HATE TO GO TO DALLAS.
I'M STILL A SOUTHERN GOSPEL PORCHETTA JUST TO DRIVE TO GARLAND LAST NIGHT TO REHEARSE, IT WAS MISERABLE BECAUSE I LIKED BEING ABLE TO LEAVE MY HOUSE IN TERRELL, MY OFFICE AT SEVEN MINUTES, SO HE'D EVEN COME DOWN HERE, TOOK ME A WHOPPING 15 OR 20 IF YOU DON'T GET BEHIND THE TRUCK.
WELL THE PROBLEM EXACERBATES OUR ROAD BRIDGE ISSUES AS WELL BECAUSE THEN WE GOT, EVERYBODY JUST ACTED UP ON THE SHIP.
I KNOW MANDALAS AND STUFF IS IN OUR FAITH POLICY.
ONE OF THE THINGS IS IN HERE IS IN ORDER TO APPLY FOR BATEMAN IN THE COUNTY THAT WE WERE GOING TO TALK ABOUT, THE PATIENT HAS TO SIT HIM DOWN.
I DIDN'T EVEN REALIZE THAT UNTIL WE HAD A PROJECT, BUT TO ME, I NEVER HEARD OF THAT BEFORE.
AND TO ME, THE INITIAL CONTACT THAT YOU HAVE WITH A PROSPECT, IT'S, IT'S A, YOU DON'T WANT TO SEEM UNFRIENDLY AND WANT TO DO EVERYTHING CAN TO ENCOURAGE
I'LL SAY SOMETHING THAT COMES TO MIND JUST ROUTES UP ON HIM.
IT WOULD BE LIKE A RETAIL STORE, YOU KNOW, HAVING A COVER CHARGE, 50 BUCKS TICKETS.
THEY MIGHT MAKE A, WE DID IT ON THE LIGHTS THAT WEEK.
THE SOLAR PROJECT, THEY TELL YOU THIS.
IT WOULD BE, I DON'T SEE THAT.
I'M SURE IT'S DESIGNED TO FIT, SUBMITTED.
YOU KNOW, IF YOU HAVE TO MAKE SURE SOMETHING SERIOUS AND YOU KNOW THAT THEY'RE NOT GONNA FRIVOLOUSLY APPLY AND YOU DO A BUNCH OF WORK, FORGET IT.
BUT IF YOU HAVE ANY FEE, IT OUGHT TO BE LESS THAN IT OUGHT TO BE DOWN THE ROAD.
I DON'T, I DON'T, DO YOU KNOW ANYBODY THAT EVER HEARD THAT? RIGHT? I HAD DONE NOT LEAVING WHILE I WOULDN'T BE THRILLED TO, BUT IF I HAD A PROJECT, IN OUR CASE, THE TERRIBLE LEADER, YOU SEE
ANYBODY ELSE HAVE ANYTHING RIGHT THERE, BACK THERE? OH, EXCELLENT.
I WILL TELL YOU THAT SINCE THE TERRIBLE SCHOOL DISTRICTS GO FORWARD, RATE HAS INCREASED.
ANYTHING FROM THE APPRAISAL OFFICE, ANYBODY.
SO I GUESS NEXT STEP IS I'LL WORK WITH REBECCA AND WE'LL TALK ABOUT MAYBE SEPARATING THEM THREE ONE POLICY.
YOU TALKED ABOUT ELIMINATING AND THOUSAND DOLLARS.
[01:20:01]
OKAY.AND WE'LL SEE THAT ON THE 25TH WE'LL POST A NOTICE ON THE PAPER.
WHAT ABOUT THE COMMITTEE? THE COMMITTEE UTILIZE THAT ASPECT OF THE POLICY.
SO IF YOU'RE NOT USING IT, I WOULD ARGUE THAT WE SHOULD TAKE IT OUT AND I'M GLAD YOU BROUGHT THAT UP AS A STATUTORY COMMITTEE.
I THINK THE COMMISSIONERS COURT IS THE REVIEW COMMITTEE.
I DON'T THINK WE NEED A COMMITTEE.
THE MAIN INTENT WAS JUST THAT WE ALREADY HAD THE BUY IN OF THE OTHER TAXING ENTITIES.
THAT COMMUNICATION, THOSE THINGS.
Y'ALL ARE ALL IN THAT COMMUNITY.
WHETHER YOU KNOW OR NOT IS THAT YOU KNOW, BECAUSE OUR JOB IS TO HANDLE WHATEVER ABATEMENT.
I AM INTERESTED TO KNOW IF THE COMMISSIONERS LIKE THE POINT SYSTEM.
CAN I SAY IT? I CAN'T REMEMBER WHERE HE GOT THAT BABY FROM SOMEBODY ELSE'S.
WELL YOU'LL SHARE THAT POWERPOINT WITH US.
I GUESS MY QUESTION ABOUT THE POINT SYSTEM, WHICH IS A GOOD WAY TO DO IT, BUT WHO'S RESPONSIBLE FOR GRADING THE PROJECT? WHO WE DID.
DO WE LISTEN TO THE DETAILS AND SEE HOW THEY SCORE THEMSELVES OR I'M GOING TO TAKE A BUNCH OF, I THINK THE SCORE DOES IT.
ULTIMATELY I WOULD PREFER YOU TO CREATE IT BECAUSE I DON'T
WELL, A LOT OF INFORMATION SAYING WE NEED SOMEONE ON OUR SIDE TO ASSIST THAT INFORMATION.
WELL, CAN WE JUST DO IT AS A GROUP COLLECTIVELY? ARE WE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PEOPLE? DO WE REALLY UNDERSTAND THAT? ALL RIGHT, SO HE DOESN'T WANT TO DO BECAUSE WITHOUT GIVING HIM WELL, NO, ACTUALLY THAT THAT MAY BE SOMETHING THAT THAT YOU LOOK AT.
BECAUSE I KNOW SOME OF MY PEERS HERE AND I, WHILE WE ALL WANT TO WIN PROJECTS, I THINK WE'RE ALL ETHICAL AND AND MOST OF THAT SCORE WAS ACTUALLY ON THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE
IT WASN'T ABOUT NECESSARILY HOW MUCH IMPACT THEY HAD ON CERTAIN THINGS AND I DO HAVE REAL INVESTMENT AND STUFF HAS A LONG TERM IMPACT.
I THINK IT'S JUST GROWN TO BE AN INTERNAL DOCUMENT.
THEY'LL SAY, NO, JUST RICHARD HAD POINTED OUT, YOU KNOW, EARLIER, HEY, WE, YOU KNOW, WE MIGHT, WE GOTTA LOOK AT ALL THE THINGS THAT ARE INVOLVED IN ANY DECISION THAT MAY COME BEFORE YOU ALL.
BUT AS AN INTERNAL DOCUMENT, IT MIGHT BE A GOOD STARTING STARTING POINT.
THEN YOU COULD ALSO, YOU KNOW, THEY COULD HUNDRED JERRY WALK OR USE JERRY'S MOM AND, AND UH, I MEAN, I DON'T KNOW WHAT THAT COSTS, BUT IT'S NOT LIKE, WELL ACTUALLY MOST OF US HAVE IT AND THEN YOU CAN RUN THE MODEL AND THE MODEL WOULD SAY, DO THIS, DO THAT OR, OR WHATEVER.
SO I THINK YOU COULD USE THAT.
JERRY'S, UH, YOU KNOW, EVERY, EVERY GOOD ORGANIZATION ED ORGANIZATION, STATE USES HIS MODEL COULD USE THAT, USE A POINT SYSTEM TO COME UP WITH WHATEVER Y'ALL ARE.
NUMBER ONE, WE'VE ALREADY SAID THAT, YOU KNOW, THE INITIAL POINT WAS THAT EVERY PROPOSAL HAS TO BE, YOU KNOW, IT'S NOT A TEMPLATED FUNCTION.
EVERY PROPOSAL HAS TO BE EVALUATED INDIVIDUALLY AND SOME REQUIRE MORE ANALYSIS AND SOME WILL REQUIRE LESS.
SECONDLY, WE HAVE A PRETTY GOOD AT ECONOMIC, UH, UH, UH, ADMINISTRATOR, UH, THAT WORKS FOR THE COUNTY ALREADY.
SO, SO A NUMBER OF THOSE KINDS OF MODELING PROJECTS I THINK COULD BE DELEGATED, UH, YOU KNOW, TO THE COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR WHO WOULD THEN PROVIDE THAT INFORMATION AND THIS COMPONENT, THE TECHNICAL PART.
I MEAN, AND THEN, YOU KNOW, AND IF IT, IF FOR SOME REASON IT DOES HAVE SOME COMPLEXITIES THAT EXCEED OUR ABILITY TO DO IT, THEN YOU'RE RIGHT.
WE CAN ALWAYS SEEK OUTSIDE GUIDANCE AS PART OF THE DELIBERATION AND WE'RE GOING TO DO INDIVIDUALLY ON THEIR REPURPOSING.
BUT YOU'RE SAYING THAT PERSONAL PROJECT COMING FROM THE CITIES ARE PROBABLY GOING TO HAVE THAT MODEL ALREADY.
WHAT I'M GOING TO HAVE IT, SOME OF YOUR SMALLER
[01:25:01]
COMMUNITIES ARE NOT.AND THEN I THINK, YOU KNOW, I THINK WE'VE GOT A GOOD COMMISSIONER'S COURT.
I'VE, UM, OF COURSE I'M A BIG FAN OF LOCAL CONTROL.
UH, AND, AND I THINK THAT YOU ARE WISE ENOUGH TO REALIZE THAT A PROJECT THAT YOU MIGHT PROVIDE AN ABATEMENT FOR IN CRANDALL THAT YOU MIGHT TELL TERRELL TO GO BUT AS TONGUE, THERE'S NO, YOU KNOW, BECAUSE BECAUSE THAT
THERE HAS TO BE SOME SUBJECTIVITY ON YOUR BART BECAUSE I'LL TAKE SOME RIDICULOUS BOB TELL YOU, I WAS ON THE, UH, COMMUNITY AWARDS COMMITTEE A FEW YEARS AGO IN CHARITON.
SO IF TERRELL SUBMITTED A SONIC FOR AN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AWARD TO THE STATE ASSOCIATION, WE GET LAUGHED OUT OF THE PLACE.
BUT THERE WAS A SMALL TEXAS COMMUNITY THAT GETTING THAT SONIC WAS A BIG, BIG DEAL.
SO THAT COMMUNITY, IT MARRIED TO GOOD CONSIDERATION.
I REMEMBER HIS NAME, SO IT DIDN'T LAST TWO MONTHS.
SO, YOU KNOW,
BUT YOU KNOW WHAT, WE ALL ANSWERED THE BOARDS AND, AND I LOCKED, MY WIFE LIKES TO EAT.
I MEAN, NOT A LOT, BUT I MEAN SHE LIKES HAVING A ROOF OVER HER HEAD.
MY KIDS, MY KIDS, MY KIDS LOVE TO BE ABLE TO GO PLACES.
AND SO THAT, YEAH, THAT'S PREDICATED A LOT BOARD HAVING TRUST IN ME TO NOT LEAD THEM ASTRAY.
AND SO YOUR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PROFESSIONALS ARE GO WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT YOU, I DON'T WANT TO BRING YOU TO JUNK BECAUSE ONE DAY I'M REALLY GOING TO NEED YOU FOR A PROJECT THAT IS GOING TO BE THE MAKE OR BREAK AND I WANT YOU TO BE ABLE TO TRUST THE INFORMATION THAT I'M GIVING YOU.
SO, SO YOU DO HAVE THAT WITH YOUR, IN DEALING WITH DRINKING, I'VE DEVELOPED A LOT OF WHAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT COMES WITHIN THE TERMS OF YOUR AGREEMENT AND THE ENFORCEMENT MECHANISMS THAT YOU PUT IN THERE TO MAKE SURE THAT THE COMPANY ACTUALLY IS HIRING THE JOBS THAT THEY'RE SUPPOSED TO AND BRINGING IN THE CAPITAL THAT THEY'RE SUPPOSED TO.
AND THEN THAT'S WHERE THE APPRAISAL DISTRICT REALLY MATTERS A LOT.
TALKING ABOUT CAROLYN AND UH, I MEAN, RAY'S VERY AGGRESSIVE WHEN HE GOES AFTER THESE FOLKS, BUT HE GIVES US SO MUCH INFORMATION WHEN WE MEAN IT'S LIKE WE DON'T HAVE ANY QUESTIONS.
SO I THINK THAT'D BE A BRITAIN'S ASSET TO US COMMISSIONER'S COURT.
WE NEED THAT INFORMATION ABOUT THE PROJECT.
I MEAN, WE'VE GOT GUYS OUT, I THINK.
I THINK THAT'S WHERE I'M GOING.
I WOULDN'T BE GIVING ME GOOD INFORMATION.
I DON'T WANT US THERE FOR QUESTIONS.
WE DON'T HAVE, WE, WE, THE COUNTY DON'T HAVE AN EDC.
I MEAN, WE CAN, PEOPLE THAT WE'VE GOT AROUND WITHIN OUR PRECINCTS, I JUST WANT GOOD INFORMATION TO MAKE MY DINNER.
I JUST DON'T WANT US TO BE TAKING WHAT SOMEONE COMES IN AND TELLS US.
BUT OUR AGREEMENTS ARE FREE, OR AT LEAST THE PROPOSALS ARE OFTEN, YOU KNOW, THEY'RE NOT IDENTICAL TO THE CITIES.
I MEAN, OKAY, HERE'S, HERE'S, I'M JUST SPEAKING FOR ME.
MY PHILOSOPHY IS THAT IF I PUT A PROJECT IN TERRELL TERRELL'S GOING TO BENEFIT THE MOST FROM THE COUNTY'S GOING TO BENEFIT SOME.
AND SO IF I ASKED YOU, I'M USUALLY GOING TO ASK YOU FOR LESS THAN I ASKED THE CITY BECAUSE YOUR BENEFITS GOING TO BE LESS.
WE'RE TO HAVE A SALES TAX WRAP FOR THE JOURNAL ON THAT COMPANY.
WE DON'T HAVE THAT EXTRA MONEY.
THE ONLY THING IS WHEN YOU PUT IT ON, REMEMBER YEARS AGO LOOKING AT JOB CREATED SOME OF THE PROJECTS AND TERRIBLE, UH, GENERALLY SPEAKING I WOULD SAY LIKE AUTO ZONE, 15% OF THE PEOPLE THAT WORK IN AUTO LIVE IN THE CITY OF DARRELL, MAYBE THEY LIVE ALL, YOU KNOW, PROBABLY 75% OF THEM LIVE IN COFFEE COUNTY, BUT THEY DON'T LIVE.
[01:30:01]
BENEFIT AND IN COUNTY IS GETTING PROPERTY TAX.BUT ONE THING I'VE NOTICED, IT'S KIND OF FUNNY, BUT A MAJORITY OF OUR WORKERS EXCELLENT LIVES AND MUSKY FIRST COMMUNITY.
AND IT DRIVES YOU KIND OF CRAZY BECAUSE THE HOUSING IS SO CHEAP AND SCAPE TO POINTY OR EVEN TERRIBLE, THEN YOU JUST CAN'T BEAT IT.
AND SUPPOSE ONE OF THE ADVANTAGES TO YOU OWN THAT AND, AND I DON'T HAVE THE STUDY BUT YOU KNOW, WE'VE SEEN STUDIES BEFORE WHERE IF IF I WORK IN 40 AND LIVE IN SCHEME, CHANCES ARE ALMOST STOP UP, STOP AND PICK UP MILK AND EGGS AND GROCERIES AND 40 BEFORE I GET TO MOSQUITO.
CAUSE ONCE I HEAD DOWN THE ROAD I WANT TO GO HOME.
BUT, BUT IT, IT IS KIND OF, IT IS KIND OF A DIFFERENT SITUATION AND THAT AMAZING MAN, I'M NOT TALKING ABOUT GOOD JOB BOY.
I'M TALKING ABOUT ALL THE LOWER END JOBS THAT PEOPLE NEED TO FEEL BECAUSE OF THE HOUSE.
THEY JUST DON'T HAVE REAL LOW INCOME HOUSING AND SOME OF THEM LIVE IN TERRIBLE, YOU KNOW, THEY'VE GOT A FEW APARTMENTS OVER THERE THAT PRETTY LOW.
IN FACT THE FACT, I THINK LOWE'S HAS AN AWFUL LOT PEOPLE, THE ACTUAL NAME OF THE COFFEE THAT COME TO THE LEVELS IN YOUR DAY, YOU KNOW, I'M THINKING, YOU KNOW, SO IT'S PRETTY LATE.
[4. Discuss/Consider setting public hearing and adoption date for Kaufman County's Tax Abatement Rebate Guidelines Resolution.]
SO NEXT ITEM ON THE AGENDA IS DISCUSS, CONSIDER SETTING PUBLIC HEARING AND ADOPTION DAY FOR CORPORAL COUNTIES WITH REPAID GUIDELINES, RESOLUTION.JUDGE, BEFORE YOU GET TO THAT, LET ME JUST ASK THIS AND GOING THROUGH THE PACKET THAT THE LAST SECOND THAT WAS DEMONSTRATED HERE, WAS THIS A HISTORICAL ABATEMENT? DO WE HAVE ANY, IS THERE SOME INTEREST IN THAT IN THIS COUNTY? I JUST SAW THAT AND I THOUGHT YOU GUYS MIGHT BE INTERESTED IN IT.
SO I THREW IT IN HERE JUST IN HISTORIC PROPERTY TAX ABATEMENT AND YOU SEE THAT IN THIS PACK.
I DID NOT SEE THAT AS COLLIN COUNTY.
WE DIDN'T DISCUSS IT, SO I DIDN'T KNOW IF THERE WAS SOME INITIATIVE THERE OR NOT.
THEN IT ACTUALLY HURTS
I MEAN YOU GUYS HAVE A LOT OF INTEREST IN HISTORIC ISSUE, SO THAT'S THE ONLY REASON WHY I INCLUDED IT IN THE BACK AS WELL.
YOU KNOW, THERE IS, THERE'S MORE IN OTHER PARTS THAN IN MEN AND I DON'T THINK WE'LL HAVE ANY ABATEMENT AND FOR ME AT THIS TIME, BUT UH, WHERE WE GOT THE GRANT, WE COULD NOT GRANT A HISTORICAL ABATEMENT UNLESS IT WAS IN OUR POLICY.
SO IF WE COULD PUT IT IN THERE, YOU COULD PUT THAT IN THE POLICY WOULD HURT ANYTHING.
I MEAN YOU HAVE THE AIRPORT, THE MUSEUM AND ALL THE DIFFERENT THINGS YOU SHOULD HAVE.
IF THEY DID AN EXPANSION OF SOME KIND OF, THEN THEY HAVE TO HAVE SOMETHING IN THERE TO BE ABLE TO DO IT, YOU KNOW? UM, I MEAN THERE IS AN INTEREST, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE A HISTORICAL, YEAH, MY AND ALL THAT.
AND THEN WHAT, WHAT I WAS JUST GOING TO SUGGEST IS AN HOUR INCLUDE THAT IN THIS PROJECT IS I'LL WORK WITH UH, REBECCA AND COME UP WITH SOME SESSION SUGGESTED CHAIN CHANGES IN OUR POLITICS AND OUR POLICY.
I'M NOT SURE HOW, IF I UNDERSTAND, I'M NOT SURE HOW RELEVANT ARE A WITH TALK, HOW CRITICAL IT IS.
UH, BECAUSE I THINK WE'RE PROBABLY GOING TO BE DOING THREE.
WE'VE GOT TO HAVE A POLICY AND WE'VE GOT TO PUBLISH WHERE IT'S GOING TO COME INTO PLAY IS WITH YOUR CITIES THAT HAVE REINVESTMENT ZONES OR TERS.
AND THEN THEY WERE GOING TO ASK YOU FOR BEIGNETS WITHIN THOSE, BUT THEY CAN ASK US FOR IT.
THEN WE CAN RESPOND WITH THE THREE ANYMORE.
THE ONLY OTHER THING I CAN THINK OF IS IF YOU GET A PROJECT AMENDMENT FOR A CURRENT ABATEMENT AGREEMENT, WHICH I KNOW ARE KIND OF IN THE WORKS AND WE'D HAVE TO HAVE A POLICY IN PLACE FOR THAT.
BUT THAT'S THE ONLY, I MEAN I'M NOT SAYING WE DON'T HAVE A VAPOR POLICY, BUT BECAUSE WE MAY BE USING A VAPE, BUT I'M THINKING THEY'RE NOT GOING TO BE THE TREND FOR US.
JUST CAUSE YOU'VE GOT A DOUBLING IF YOU USE IT.
SAME THING WITH THE HISTORICAL, IT DOESN'T HURT TO HAVE IT IN THERE.
[01:35:01]
REALLY EXCITED FOR THAT WEEK.WE WOULD BE REALLY INTERESTED IN.
SO I WAS CALLING FOR A MOTION TO SET THE HEARING AND ADOPTION DATE FOR THE TAX RELATED POLICY FOR FEBRUARY 20TH.
IS THERE A MOTION? NORMALLY THE MOTION WE HAD HAD EMOTIONAL COMMISSIONER BARBERS OR SECOND, SECOND, SECOND MR. PHILLIPS DISCUSSION AND HOW SHE CARRIES PHILIPS