When state lawmakers adjourned last month without addressing several economic issues, that decision was “contrary to the will of the people,” wrote New Hanover County manager Chris Coudriet in a letter dated Tuesday and sent to his counterparts across the state.
 
“I urge you to join me in contacting Governor McCrory and your legislators, as well as those in surrounding counties, to ask for a special session to act on sustaining very vital economic development tools such as JDIG [Job Development and Investment Grant], film tax credits, and the like. There is too much at stake and the well-being of North Carolina’s families is too important for action not to be taken now,” Coudriet wrote in the document, addressed to “North Carolina County Managers.”
 
But as of Wednesday, the governor’s decision about whether to call the legislature back was still on hold, according to Gov. Pat McCrory’s office.

“I'm going to look at the urgency and need and also the potential of getting enough votes,” McCrory said in a statement Tuesday that was provided Wednesday by his office. “We’re continuing to review options this week.”
 
The General Assembly ended its short session Aug. 20 and, unless lawmakers are called back, will not reconvene until 9 a.m. Jan. 14.
 
“The recent decision by the North Carolina General Assembly to adjourn without addressing key economic issues is contrary to the will of the people,” wrote Coudriet. “... Programs that play a direct role in job creation and preservation, such as the Job Development and Investment Grant, Job Maintenance and Capitol Development Fund, Job Catalyst Fund, and Crowd Funding have effectively been eliminated.

“If a major or even mid-sized employer were to show interest in one of our counties, our State Department of Commerce would lack the necessary tools to ultimately attract that employer to locate here. In all likelihood, we will consistently miss out on economic development opportunities to neighboring states without NCGA action.”

It’s not exaggeration to say such tools can make all the difference when companies are making their final decisions about where they want to go, local officials have said repeatedly in recent weeks.
 
For example: Brunswick County is among the top three candidates for eight industrial projects, and incentives will most likely have an impact on the outcome of those considerations, said Jim Bradshaw, executive director of the Brunswick County Economic Development Commission.
 
“Once you become one of the final three, they’ve already determined that all things are equal,” Bradshaw said Wednesday. “The labor supply, the site, the quality of life is almost identical.”
 
When it’s decision time, “that’s when incentives come into play,” Bradshaw said. “Right now, we have none to offer.”
 
Also in his letter, Coudriet wrote that the area has already lost or seen reductions in long-standing employers such as Dak Americas, Invista, Coty and others.

In addition to county managers, copies of the letter from Coudriet were sent to the New Hanover County Board of Commissioners, Wilmington City Council, N.C. Association of County Commissioners, Wilmington Business Development CEO Scott Satterfield and Wilmington Regional Film Commission director Johnny Griffin.