THE ECONOMY:

Southern Nevada group bids to become a state-funded regional development authority

A consortium of Southern Nevada municipal and county economic development departments and existing business organizations is expected to bid to be designated a regional development authority that would be funded by the state.

The state Board of Economic Development has set a timeline for the selection of regional development authorities from across the state to engage Gov. Brian Sandoval’s plan to expand and diversify the economy.

The governor’s office will issue a request for proposals by the end of March and expects to receive them by the end of April. By the end of May, the board will award $2.4 million to $2.8 million to successful bidders, and contracts will be signed by the end of June.

In Southern Nevada, each municipality has an economic development office that works to recruit companies to their respective cities, and the nonprofit Nevada Development Authority recruits businesses to Southern Nevada, steering prospects toward real estate experts and government tax incentives while streamlining the process of relocation.

As the state office sorts out how it will execute its plan to grow and diversify the economy, the various public and private economic development groups are working behind the scenes to become one of the state designated regional development authorities.

“In a perfect world, we’d like to see all the municipalities, the (Las Vegas) Chamber (of Commerce), the NDA and a number of other groups around town that hopefully will come together on this,” said Glenn Christenson, president of the Nevada Development Authority.

Christenson said representatives of each organization had been meeting for several months to sort out the best way to meet the goals established in landmark legislation signed into law by Sandoval in June.

“Historically, I think we’ve equated economic diversification with economic development,” Christenson said. “There’s no one group in town that does everything required by (the legislation.)”

The state’s economic development plan calls for the creation of new businesses within the state and the retention and expansion of existing companies as well as attracting and relocating companies from outside the state, a key component of the NDA’s efforts, particularly in California.

Steve Hill, the executive director of the Governor’s Office of Economic Development, has the ultimate responsibility of selecting regional development authorities under the plan. He’s not limited in how many he can select.

According to the state’s plan, an entity must be a local government, a private organization or a combination of the two to be designated a regional development authority. Local governments must be either a municipality, a county or a local agency specifically dedicated to economic development in its jurisdiction. Private organizations must be nonprofit, based in Nevada and registered with the secretary of state’s office and designated for economic development.

Chosen regional development authorities will be required to drive advancements that create jobs in seven targeted sectors, work with community colleges and state agencies to meet workforce development needs, cooperate with research institutions to increase commercialization of innovations, increase exports and foreign investment and effectively market the region.

The seven industry sectors being targeted by the state include the further diversification of tourism, gaming and entertainment to include niche markets, film and media and online gaming applications; health and medical services; business information technology systems; alternative clean energy production; mining, materials and manufacturing; logistics and operations; and aerospace and defense.

Meanwhile, the board is awaiting an interpretation from the state Attorney General’s Office on whether the $10 million catalyst fund designated in the economic development legislation is constitutional.

At issue is a section of the Nevada Constitution that says, “The state shall not donate or loan money or its credit, subscribe to or be interested in the stock of any company, association or corporation, except corporations formed for educational or charitable purposes.”

The catalyst fund would be used for projects that align with the state’s plan for building the targeted industries and high-value jobs and must be awarded to programs that create or expand businesses in the state or relocate companies to Nevada. Hill would be able to approve grants, loans or loan guarantee requests of under $100,000 while the board would be required to vote on requests of more than $100,000.

The board also received an update on efforts by Noble Studios to create an economic development brand concept for the state. Noble, which also is working with GreenRubino to create tourism branding for the state, will conduct focus groups with businesspeople statewide to identify Nevada’s economic brand position and personality and determine how it meshes with the state’s tourism message.

Board members said they wanted branding that could be clearly communicated and wouldn’t leave an impression that Nevada’s strong emphasis on entertainment and gaming would detract from its ability to host corporations and entrepreneurs.

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