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New Agency To Lure Businesses To Florida

ORLANDO (CBS4) – In an effort to make good a campaign promise to create hundreds of new jobs, Governor Rick Scott has signed a bill creating a new state agency to promote Florida business and economic development.

Scott said the legislation would also help him keep promises to streamline government, eliminate inefficiencies and grow Florida's economy.

The agency will be called the Department of Economic Opportunity.

Scott signed the bill while meeting with Enterprise Florida leaders in Orlando.

Enterprise Florida is an existing public-private economic development partnership that will continue.
Scott said the new law will help the state more quickly react to business development opportunities.
It reduces the deadline for acting on incentive funding to 10 days instead of as many as 42.

The new law also lets Scott approve incentives up to $2 million without legislative approval.

(©2011 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

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