Governor Scott Announces More Than $600,000 in Defense Grants for the Tampa Bay Area

Press Release

Today, Governor Rick Scott announced more than $600,000 in defense grants for the Tampa Bay area. This includes:

* The Tampa/ Hillsborough Economic Development Corporation, the Greater Tampa Chamber of Commerce, and the Tampa Defense Alliance were jointly awarded $90,000 through Florida's Defense Reinvestment Grant Program.
* The Tampa Bay Defense Alliance will also receive $175,000 through a Florida Defense Support Task Force grant.
* Polk County was awarded $100,000 through Florida's Defense Infrastructure Grant Program.
* Pinellas County was awarded $250,000 through Florida's Defense Infrastructure Grant Program.

Governor Scott said, "Today's announcement is another example of the steps Florida is taking to give our nation's military all of the resources they need to protect our country. Over the last four and half years, we have accomplished a lot on behalf of our nation's military in Florida. We have waived out of state tuition fees for veterans and their spouses, created opportunities for veterans to get a great job, and supported our state veterans nursing homes so they can provide better care. We will continue to support our veterans and we are proud to award the Tampa Bay community with these grants."

"The Florida Defense Grants Programs are vital for our military and defense industry, and strengthen Florida's workforce through the highly skilled former military personnel who enter the employment market each year. I am proud to play a part in supporting our military installations and communities, and appreciate what our service men and women do to protect our state," said Bill Johnson, President & CEO of Enterprise Florida.

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