Gov. Perry Promotes Film, Tourism Industry
Nueces County Record Star
Posted: Monday, May 21, 2012 7:16 am | Updated: 2:19 pm, Thu May 31, 2012.
Gov. Rick Perry put the spotlight on film and tourism in Texas last week, when he said Texas has combined cutting edge ideas with a “can do” attitude. “We’ve got as many innovative and create people as we have across the country,” Perry said. “If something isn’t done, it’s because a Texan hasn’t tried it yet.”
Perry spoke May 15 at the Texas Film and Tourism Conference held at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi. The event was hosted the university, Del Mar College, The University of Houston-VIctoria and State Rep. Todd Hunter. Perry said the results of keeping government out of the way of business have been overwhelming, and hard to believe, he said, especially for states like California, which continues to be plagued by budget issues and businesses fleeing the state.
Perry said Texas has led the nation over the last 10 years in consistently being the top destination for individuals moving from one place to another. He pointed to CEO Magazine, which listed Texas for the eighth year in a row as the best place to do business. When it comes to the best cities for job creation int eh country, Forbes Magazine placed Texas cities in the top five for all three categories, large, medium and small cities. “These are declarations that you all have done it right,” Perry said. Perry pointed to State Rep. J.M. Lozano, a local state representative who is also a small business owner. Perry said it was the innovations and risk taking by small business owners like Lozano, which lead to job growth in the state of Texas. Between March 2011 and March 2012, Texas has seen an increase of 300,000 net new jobs in the private sector, more than any other state in the country, Perry said. “It ain’t bragging if you can do it,” Perry said.
He spoke of examples such as Apple, bringing 3,600 new jobs to Texas, as part of their largest expansion outside the state of California. He also pointed to Caterpillar, which now makes all their engines in Texas. He said every caterpillar machine sold in the world now will have the words “Made in Texas” stamped on their engines. Perry said this speaks directly to the intellectual capabilities of the state.
Through enterprise funds and emerging technology funds, the state continues to attract those in the television industry. Not only by the incentives studios can receive by working here, but also in the availability to crews, catering services and other side industries that support film production, are all available within the state.
“They know the best crews, the best resources and opportunities are here in the state of Texas,” Perry said. “For every dollar spent in the Moving Image Industry Incentive Program, we generate $19 in private sector economic activity. I’m an animal science major, but I get it. That is a good return on investment, and we continue to play a role and I hope a growing roll in more established forms of media, and we’ll continue to encourage development in newer media type enterprises, particularly in the video game industry.”
Nueces County Record Star
