Womer Benjamin discusses options for Valley's economy

The candidate promised to promote tax benefits available to new businesses locating in the Valley.
By CYNTHIA VINARSKY
VINDICATOR BUSINESS WRITER
YOUNGSTOWN -- Ann Womer Benjamin brought a big gun to town -- the man she says is known as President Bush's closest friend in Congress -- to tout her candidacy for the 17th District Congressional seat.
U.S. Rep. Rob Portman of Cincinnati, R-2nd, chairman of the Elected Republican Leadership and a senior member of the House Ways and Means Committee, promised Womer Benjamin "will have the connections to make it happen" for the Valley if she is elected.
Portman said Womer Benjamin has "distinguished herself among her peers" in the Ohio House, where 18 of the bills she's sponsored in her eight years in office have become law.
Speaking at a joint press conference Wednesday with Portman at Youngstown State University, Womer Benjamin said she is looking into tax credit programs and other incentives that could be used to promote the Mahoning Valley's economic development.
Renewal community
She noted that Youngstown has been designated a renewal community by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, a title that could mean millions of dollars in tax breaks and other incentives for businesses that operate or locate downtown.
Bush visited the city the day after he won the Republican nomination in August 2000 to announce that Youngstown would be the first city in the country to benefit from the renewal community program.
Womer Benjamin said, however, lawmakers must do more than sit by and wait for the renewal community designation to attract attention from would-be developers and employers.
"You have to make businesses aware of what's available to them if they come to Youngstown," she said. "I will actively pursue the benefits that come with the renewal community designation. That hasn't been done."
The candidate said she supports other Republican-sponsored proposals to grant tax credits for investors willing to develop low-income areas and for some first-time home buyers.
Empowerment zone
She's also been investigating the feasibility of having Mahoning and Trumbull counties designated a federal empowerment zone, a program that awards communities $10 million a year for 10 years to be used for economic development initiatives.
The Youngstown-Warren area's applications for the empowerment zone designation were rejected twice under the Clinton administration, losing out to larger cities like Cincinnati and Columbus.
Womer Benjamin acknowledged that the Bush administration hasn't designated any empowerment zones, preferring the tax breaks and other incentives offered under the renewal community program, but she's still determined to study the requirements of the empowerment zone program.
"You have to do your homework; you have to know the requirements," she said. "I've done that to help communities on the state level. The only difference, on the federal level, is that there are so many more options available."