Gov. Pat McCrory and the man vying for his job in the upcoming election, N.C. Attorney General Roy Cooper, shared some of their economic development goals and concerns Wednesday during an event at Wrightsville Beach.  

At separate times on Wednesday morning, Cooper and McCrory answered questions during the N.C. Economic Developers Association’s 50th annual conference at the beach town's Holiday Inn Resort hotel.

Those in attendance included numerous economic development officials from across the state, including New Hanover, Brunswick and Pender counties.  

Asked for his thoughts on what obstacles the state faces in attracting employers, Cooper almost immediately answered, “We have to repeal House Bill 2. I mean, it is causing problems out there that we don’t even realize at this point. You can already document hundreds of millions of dollars and you can document thousands of jobs, but many economic developers, many frustrated businesspeople, are telling me that this is the tip of the iceberg, that we are not even getting to the table right now in a number of business development efforts because of this discriminatory legislation.”

The Democrat said the legislation, which was nicknamed the “Bathroom Bill” because it requires transgendered individuals to use public bathrooms that reflect their birth gender, is an unnecessary hurdle to bringing new business in, not just in urban areas but also rural parts of the state.

During his question-and-answer session, McCrory, a Republican, did not mention the law directly, but said, “Don’t believe the rhetoric that people aren’t coming to North Carolina.”

The governor cited population increases and recent tourism growth as evidence.

Another economic development obstacle, Cooper said, is coordination of economic development efforts, referring specifically to the public-private Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina that was launched under McCrory’s leadership.

Cooper (shown at left) said with the creation of the partnership has come concerns from local economic development officials and business leaders about who to call at the state level. He added that he wouldn’t automatically want to eliminate the partnership.

“What I would want is a quick, data-driven review of what’s working and what’s not,” Cooper said.  

McCrory said the partnership experienced growing pains during the first year, but has “a great director” in Chris Chung, and Chung is working well with state commerce secretary John Skvarla and other state departments.

He said, “People understand marketing is Chris’s opportunity; finalizing the deal is John’s and my opportunity. I keep the politics out of it ... we’ll make a decision within seconds. If anything is being held up in this administration, you call me. There should be no hold-up on decisions.”

McCrory said he is also focused on more permanent long-term recruitment plans.

“I don’t think we should have a cap at all [on the state’s Job Development Investment Grant, or JDIG]. It doesn’t make any sense because it’s all new net income," McCrory said. "I need your help to convince the legislators of that."

Cooper said the JDIG cap should at least be increased.

Before McCrory and Cooper spoke, the new president of the state’s community college system, Jimmie Williamson, addressed the conference, mentioning the effectiveness of South Carolina’s Governor’s Closing Fund in bringing in Volvo and Mercedes facilities. Williamson is leaving his post as head of the S.C. Technical College System and officially starting his North Carolina job July 1.

In response to a question about a governor’s closing fund for North Carolina, Cooper said it is a tool a governor should have, and he’d be willing to talk about ways it’s administered.

“That’s worked for North Carolina in the past. I know it’s the kind of thing a lot of people don’t like, but at the end of the day it can be important to improving the quality of life of so many people,” he said.

McCrory said he believes a guaranteed fund with parameters is necessary, especially in efforts to land auto or aerospace manufacturers at suitable sites in North Carolina.

Early in his comments, McCrory emphasized the need for more venture capital to fund startups and entrepreneurial efforts, from convincing venture capitalists in other states to consider projects in North Carolina to looking at ways state money could be used to support such ventures, potentially in their less risky second and third rounds of investments.

Additionally, he said he’s pushing for the passage of legislation during the General Assembly’s short session that includes a crowdfunding component.

“We almost need to have a Shark Tank mentality, and a group of people that entrepreneurs can come to and go, ‘I’ve got a great idea, I just gotta get some money to do it’ because the banks aren’t really lending as much money because some of their hands are tied,” McCrory said.

McCrory and Cooper face off at the polls Nov. 8.