http://www.floridasgreatnorthwest.com/pressRelease/grant.htm
On December 28, Florida?s Great Northwest applied through the Governor?s Office for a U.S. Department of Labor $15 million Workforce Innovation in Regional Economic Development (WIRED) Grant. The Governor?s Office notified Florida?s Great Northwest on January 5 that Governor Bush had submitted its application to the U.S. Department of Labor for consideration. Wednesday, February 1, the U.S. Department of Labor announced the award of one of the thirteen national grants of $15 million each to Florida?s Great Northwest. The grant is to fund regional partnerships aimed at expanding employment and advancement opportunities and catalyzing the creation of high-skill, high wage opportunities in regional economies.
Florida?s Great Northwest will function as the lead partner in a coalition of workforce development, secondary and post secondary education, entrepreneurial and new business development, and economic development organizations as well as businesses focused on developing training initiatives designed to create a skilled workforce in the target industries of aerospace & defense, life sciences (medical device manufacturing, medical technologies, biotechnology, and health services), information technology/software development & computer engineering, construction services, and distribution services associated with the target industries. These are target industries common throughout the northwest Florida region, are growth industries, and are industries that provide high-wage, high skill jobs.
The components of Florida?s Great Northwest?s WIRED NORTHWEST FLORIDA Initiative include:
On December 28, Florida?s Great Northwest applied through the Governor?s Office for a U.S. Department of Labor $15 million Workforce Innovation in Regional Economic Development (WIRED) Grant. The Governor?s Office notified Florida?s Great Northwest on January 5 that Governor Bush had submitted its application to the U.S. Department of Labor for consideration. Wednesday, February 1, the U.S. Department of Labor announced the award of one of the thirteen national grants of $15 million each to Florida?s Great Northwest. The grant is to fund regional partnerships aimed at expanding employment and advancement opportunities and catalyzing the creation of high-skill, high wage opportunities in regional economies.
Florida?s Great Northwest will function as the lead partner in a coalition of workforce development, secondary and post secondary education, entrepreneurial and new business development, and economic development organizations as well as businesses focused on developing training initiatives designed to create a skilled workforce in the target industries of aerospace & defense, life sciences (medical device manufacturing, medical technologies, biotechnology, and health services), information technology/software development & computer engineering, construction services, and distribution services associated with the target industries. These are target industries common throughout the northwest Florida region, are growth industries, and are industries that provide high-wage, high skill jobs.
The components of Florida?s Great Northwest?s WIRED NORTHWEST FLORIDA Initiative include:
- strategic program development to further refine and implement the regional strategy,
- entrepreneurship development through a grant program coordinated with the Florida Small Business Development Center Network,
- job training grants for new or expanding businesses in the targeted industries,
- grant program for the development of secondary education ?academies? for entry level skills creation associated with employment in the target industries or for accelerated college preparation coursework in the fields of science and math,
- post-secondary education program to expand the number of graduates in fields critical to the manpower needs of businesses in the target areas, and
- construction skills training. Although construction employment is not a typical knowledge-based target industry, it is crucial to the success of the other target industries based on the region?s growth demands for residential, commercial and industrial buildings.
Seems to me that unless something is done regarding truly affordable housing, this smart idea will not work. So they are going to give incentives to people creating more jobs in an area that has the lowest unemployment rate in the entire state of Florida. 
Focus people, focus. It ain't brain surgery, nor rocket science.