Economist Urges Balance in Growth Regulation
Monday, April 25, 2011
By: Tom Parkinson

April 25, 2011 | WMFE - A proposal is moving through the state legislature that would overhaul Florida's growth management system. Many Republican lawmakers say excessive regulations put in place 25 years ago have driven development and jobs away from the state. The House passed a bill late last week that would take away most of the state's ability to review proposed new developments. It would give much of that decision-making power to local governments instead. The Senate is expected to take up a similar bill this week.

Dr. Sean Snaith is Director of the Institute for Economic Competitiveness at the University of Central Florida.
He says state leaders need to carefully balance the business community’s interest in easing regulation with the need to maintain Florida’s quality of life.
90.7’s Tom Parkinson asked Dr. Snaith why the legislature thought statewide growth regulations were needed back in the mid-1980s.