Audits, oversight, and accountability

Pioneer Press Fri, 08 Feb 2008 23:15:25 -0700
State JOBZ program in disarray, audit finds

Gov. Tim Pawlenty's flagship rural economic development program, JOBZ, is something of a mess, lacking oversight and giving big tax breaks to companies and communities that don't necessarily need them, the legislative auditor reported Friday. The 100-page evaluation of JOBZ that the state government watchdog issued is the first official examination of Minnesota's four-year-old business tax-break program - the largest state-run business subsidy program in Minnesota's recent history. The findings were not favorable, although the state's top economic development official testified Friday that JOBZ is young and "very fixable." On nearly every point, JOBZ has problems, according to the report by Legislative Auditor Jim Nobles. The program doesn't target the rural areas most in need, the standards for eligibility are too loose and the subsidy agreements themselves often don't require companies to add a meaningful number of jobs or even retain existing ones, the report concludes. There's so little oversight of the program, which is largely left to local communities to run, that some companies have continued to receive subsidies even after they exit the program. There's basically been no accountability, Nobles told the Legislative Audit Commission on Friday at the Capitol.

[[keywords: PropertyTax;Metro;]]