JEFFERSON CITY — A key piece of Gov. Mike Parson’s economic agenda this year was the creation of a special fund to help lure companies to open or expand their operations in Missouri.
But, the task of assessing how those millions of dollars might be distributed won’t be handled by experts already working for the state. The Republican governor’s administration instead plans to farm out the job to a private firm.
On Nov. 4, a request was issued for companies to submit proposals to develop a tool to help evaluate the need for state aid.
The extra cost to taxpayers remains secret.
“I’d rather not influence the bids by putting a number out,” said Maggie Kost, communications chief for the Department of Economic Development, which is leading the jobs push.
The request lays out a four-month process for the work to be completed, meaning it could be March before any companies see money from Parson’s proposal.
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Outsourcing key tasks to private companies was not discussed when Parson and the state’s economic development officials pitched the fund to skeptical lawmakers.
And there is no mention of the plan on a fiscal analysis provided to lawmakers before they voted to authorize it.
Kost told the Post-Dispatch that outsourcing the work was the plan all along.
The so-called “deal closing fund” is designed as a negotiating tool to strike agreements with companies looking to expand by granting tax credits earlier. Tax credits can be issued in the initial year, when the company needs to offset startup costs.
Currently, companies typically must hit jobs and capital investment goals to receive state assistance.
Although the proposal received bipartisan support, critics included a cadre of St. Charles County Republicans.
During a 27-hour filibuster over the governor’s economic development package, Republican Sens. Bill Eigel of Weldon Spring and Bob Onder of Lake Saint Louis repeatedly called the program a “slush fund” and said the tax incentives were “corporate welfare.”
Members of the Senate’s conservative bloc ended their filibuster without winning any concessions.
Part of Parson’s government revamp also included shrinking the Department of Economic Development.
An estimated 597 employees were shifted to the Department of Higher Education, Department of Natural Resources and Department of Insurance, Financial Institutions and Professional Registration.
Fifteen other employees now work from the lieutenant governor’s office, while 73 vacant positions were eliminated.
The decrease in employees was not mentioned as a factor in the decision to hire a contractor.
Rather, Kost said plans to outsource the work are similar to other programs in which the department seeks vendors, rather than relying on existing employees.
“Our reasoning isn’t different from any other time DED or any organization would bring in an outside vendor — they add perspective, capacity and skills to the project,” she said.