WEDC Board Holds Board Meeting In Green Bay

Wisconsin’s Economic Development Corporation (WEDC) held its board meeting in Green Bay today.

One item of business detailed how the public-private agency is complying with a critical report issued earlier this year by the Legislative Audit Bureau.

This spring, the bureau was critical of how WEDC followed up on companies that received tax credits, grants, or loans with the promise of job creation.

Hannah Renfro, the chief legal counsel and compliance officer for WEDC, says the agency is bringing on a business analyst who will be charged with tracking performance reports.

“Those performance reporting requirements that are in all of our contracts are just as important as our loan repayments,” says Renfro. “That shows how our award dollars are being used. We recognize that and we’ve put the staff in place to ensure we’re getting those reports and evaluating them appropriately.”

Performance reports are now done manually, but WEDC staff outlined plans to institute a customized computer program that will do the tracking. That is expected to be in use by September.

Governor Scott Walker, who chairs WEDC’s board of directors, says job creation is the most important statistic.

“The real return on investment is jobs and economic opportunity on capital investment,” says Walker.

The governor also signed a bill into law that requires WEDC board members and staff to report any potential economic conflicts of interest.