The Economic Development Digest - September 13, 2013

Womble Carlyle’s Economic Development Digest aggregates news, opportunities and legislation impacting business in the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic U.S.

In this week's Economic Development Digest:

California

California requires new online disclosures: specifics unclear, wcsr.com (September 9, 2013) California will require greater disclosure of privacy practices for all operators of commercial websites and apps.  But the specifics of the new disclosure requirements, which take effect January 1, remain murky. Shibley gives update on UAS efforts, The Daily Independent (September 7, 2013) Eileen Shibley, head of the Inyokern-led California Unmanned Aircraft Systems Portal team, presented an update Wednesday to the Ridgecrest City Council on the progress of a federal agency to select six test sites for unmanned aircraft.

Florida

Aerospace coalition revs engines, Pensacola News Journal (September 8, 2013) The construction of Airbus’ $600 million facility in Mobile prompts Florida to create a five-county Aerospace Coalition to attract European-based aerospace suppliers to Northwest Florida. Florida adopts emergency rule for research and development tax credit, TaxAnalysts.com (September 5, 2013)** The Florida Department of Revenue has adopted, on an emergency basis, a temporary rule to implement procedures for claiming state research and development tax credits against corporate income and franchise taxes.

National

Beware FTC enforcement if your device connects to the "internet of things", wcsr.com (September 12, 2013) FTC sanctions home video monitoring company for consumer privacy violations; may indicate trend of more aggressive enforcement. Waste vs. value in American Health Care, The New York Times (September 13, 2013) Economics Professor Reinhardt from Princeton opines on economic efficiency, or not, in the health care industry.

North Carolina

Catawba tribe pushes to open $600M casino near Charlotte, Triangle Business Journal (September 10, 2013) The Catawba Indian Nation wants to build a $600 million casino along Interstate 85 near Charlotte, a development which could bring 5,000 jobs to the region.

South Carolina

South Carolina beckons to offshore manufacturers, The Island Packet (September 7, 2013) South Carolina is courting off-shore manufacturers interesting in moving manufacturing back to the United States. South Carolina looks to broaden ports incentive to lure more shippers, The Post & Courier (September 8, 2013) Lawmakers in South Carolina are broadening a tax incentives program aimed at boosting production at the port. Virginia, Georgia and North Carolina have similar incentive programs. Site consultants rank South Carolina among top states for doing business, scnow.com (September 9, 2013) A recent survey of site consultants shows that South Carolina has tied for a second place ranking among the top states for meeting key location requirements for businesses. Logistics helping to push demand for industrial real estate, scedablog.com (September 13, 2013) A strong second quarter nationally points to continued health for the industrial real estate market.

Texas

Texas Governor to promote state's low taxes to businesses in Maryland, TaxAnalysts.com (September 13, 2013)** Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R) is targeting Maryland as his next destination to promote Texas as a low-tax location favorable to "hardworking families and businesses," Perry's office announced September 12.

Virginia

Region short of new thresholds for levying taxes for transportation, Times Dispatch (September 7, 2013) A sweeping transportation funding bill took effect July 1, which should result in an additional $350 million per year in Northern Virginia and an additional $200 million per year in Hampton Roads. Governor appoints several energy company execs to new nuclear energy consortium, Virginia Business (September 11, 2013) Several energy executives are among Governor Bob McDonnell’s appointments to a new nuclear energy group in Virginia. The General Assembly passed bills to create the Virginia Nuclear Energy Consortium Authority (VNEC) during its 2013 session. The consortium’s mission is to serve as an interdisciplinary study, research and information resource for Virginia on nuclear energy issues.

**Note: a paid subscription is required to access this article. A brief description has been provided. Please contact Womble Carlyle’s Economic Development Team for more information on these developments.

Womble Carlyle's Economic Development Team helps clients explore opportunities for locating or expanding operations in the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic U.S. Our Economic Development Team combines a thorough working knowledge of economic development incentives; land use and siting procedures; and regulatory matters at the state, county and local levels, drawing on strong relationships built over many years with key governmental and civic leaders. For more information visit www.wcsr.com/economicdevelopment.

If you have any questions about this Economic Development Digest, please e-mail EconDigest@wcsr.com or contact any member of Womble Carlyle's Economic Development Team.