Local Jobs, No Local Taxes

Late yesterday I had a chance to catch up on what happened at yesterday’s Airport Authority meeting. Here are the highlights I heard about:

The Airport Authority made clear that KBR, the company hired to manage the construction of the new airport, will be responsible for day-to-day management and oversight of all subcontractors.

At the same time, the Airport Authority made clear that they would hire the subcontractors, not KBR. This is important because it increases the opportunity for local hiring and creating local jobs.

It was also made crystal clear yesterday that the Airport Authority will not – under any circumstances – go to the Bay County Commission (or any other local taxing authority) to seek local taxes to support the project.

The Airport Authority itself has no taxing authority, so they can’t impose local taxes.

Once again, I am impressed with the level of engagement and oversight this board is showing and we should all be grateful for their service to our community.