| Sanderson hopes bill boosts economy | | Posted: Thursday, March 29, 2012 9:17 pm
| By KEVIN BOWDEN
Staff Reporter
State Rep. Bill Sanderson, R-Kenton, has high hopes that House Bill 2344 and its Senate companion bill will be passed by the state Legislature, creating a new economic development program that will help economically depressed areas such as Obion County.
The bill creates the FastTrack economic development program which would provide grants and loans to local governments and economic development agencies.
“This bill helps economically depressed areas,” Sanderson told The Messenger early today.
He successfully lobbied for the bill on the House floor Wednesday. The bill has been passed by the state House of Representatives and Sanderson said it appears a companion bill is headed for approval in the state Senate.
“The bill specifies that FastTrack economic development grants or loans to assist eligible businesses may be made only to local governments or to their economic development organizations or other political subdivisions of the state,” according to a summary of the bill on the state Legislature’s website.
“This is an extremely good bill,” Sanderson said. “It makes Tennessee competitive with surrounding states.”
He said the Legislature has been working on the bill since the start of this legislative session.
Sanderson said the bill provides “special assistance” to businesses and “targets economically de-pressed areas specifically.”
“This bill makes special preference to economically depressed areas like northwest Tennessee,” he said.
For the past six months, Obion County has maintained the second highest jobless rate in the state, following the closure of the local Goodyear plant. Published in The Messenger 3.29.12 | | | | |
