Symposium wraps up

MIRAMAR BEACH, Fla. - The 22nd Gulf Power Economic Symposium wrapped up its two-day summit Thursday with talks about innovation, public/private partnerships and what factors might make a company pick one site over another. There were 638 participants at the symposium, originally scheduled for October 2018 but canceled when Hurricane Michael targeted Northwest Florida. The second day of the summit at Sandestin Beach Resort also included remarks by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who talked about the trend of people, businesses and wealth moving from highly taxed, highly regulated states to places like Florida. He said Florida has low taxes, reasonable regulations and conservative spending. "I think we're seeing more and more people who want to come and invest in Florida for those reasons," he said. DeSantis also talked about the state's approach to preparing workers for the future. He said that while Florida's university system is ranked No. 1 by U.S. News and World Report, the university path is not the only road to success. "We set a goal to make Florida No. 1 in workforce education by 2030," he said, noting that the state is now in the middle of the pack. One of the fields with high paying jobs that do not necessarily require a college degree is aerospace. "I think that in many respects were leading the way," he said about Florida's aerospace activity compared to other states. (Source: GCAC, 04/18/19)