This is an excerpt from the Final Reading of Wednesday, Feb. 26.
A bill requiring more disclosure from businesses seeking state grants got an unfriendly reception Wednesday morning. The Vermont Economic Progress Council is now only required to release “aggregate” information about businesses that receive Vermont Economic Growth Initiative grants for job creation. The legislation, H.640, would mandate the release of business-specific information. The idea is that the Legislature’s experts could better evaluate VEGI’s effectiveness if they had more information. Confidential data would remain exempt.
Rep. Emilie Kornheiser, D-Brattleboro, the bill’s co-sponsor, says she’s not sure “if economic incentive programs like this are the best tool available to grow our economy.”
“We don’t have the data we need to make these decisions,” Kornheiser says.
State Auditor Doug Hoffer has been sharply critical of VEGI because there is no mechanism for measuring results. In an opinion piece on VTDigger last year, he wrote that VEGI and other economic development programs “cannot be audited to determine their effectiveness.”
Kornheiser, a member of the House Commerce and Economic Development Committee, which is considering H.640, was on hand to witness the evisceration of her bill by colleagues and economic development leaders.
VEPC director Megan Sullivan says the group is “doing a pretty good job now.”
“I’m open to a conversation about how to do better, but we need to know what you’re trying to accomplish,” Sullivan said.
For those just joining us, “open to a conversation” usually means “Let’s kill this thing before it spreads.”
Fred Tenney who heads the Addison County Development Association and previously headed VEPC for 16 years takes a dim view of Kornheiser’s attempt to make the VEGI program more transparent.
“It seems like every year there’s a new requirement that might hurt business participation,” Kenney said. “I’ve talked to a number of businesses, and most think it’s a very bad idea to provide this information.”
Committee members seemed skeptical if not downright hostile. “What is the objective of the bill?” asked Rep. Bob Bancroft, R-Westford. “If you add a new burden, you may discourage businesses from applying.”
After the hearing, Kornheiser was philosophical. “Our committee has very little rotation in the witness chair or in the audience,” she observed. “We have close relationships with the people who run the programs. But taxpayer dollars are taxpayer dollars, and there should be accountability.”
House Commerce will continue to consider the disclosure bill. Kornheiser is resigned to a long, uphill battle.
This is an excerpt of Final Reading. For the full rundown of bills in motion at the Statehouse, the daily legislative calendar and interviews with newsmakers, sign up here for the unabridged version delivered straight to your inbox Tuesday through Friday evenings.
