Today, the Tampa City Council approved (with a 5-2 vote) a task force that will study the pros and cons of establishing an EB-5 "Regional Center." The group will be led by local immigration attorney William Flynn.
EB-5 is also known as the Immigrant Investor Program. It was created by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service in 1990 to encourage immigrants to develop businesses and create jobs in the U.S. It's currently used in cities like Dallas and Miami. Investors who can pay their way into getting a green card do not become permanent citizens unless each investment creates at least 10 new full-time jobs for legal U.S. residents by the end of two years.
Miami's relative success with an EB-5 Regional Center is what recently inspired City Councilwoman Yolie Capin to look into the program, bringing the idea to the board.
Tampa's new task force will study whether the city should create a Regional Center, which would cost about $300,000. But as was the case when presented to the council earlier this month, there's tension around the issue.
This article appears in Sep 27 – Oct 3, 2012.