Development group gives Iowa average grades for luring in businesses

The newly elected president of the Professional Developers of Iowa says a recent ranking shows Iowa’s doing an “average” job of recruiting new businesses to the state. The Corporation for Enterprise Development gave Iowa a “B” for developmental capacity, but the group gave Iowa a “D” for business vitality. Dan Anderson of the Professional Developers of Iowa says that “D” is obviously “not very good.” The group examines the number of new business start-ups and the amount of “venture capital” available to start-up companies to come up with its grade for a state’s “business vitality.” Legislators and the Governor are talking about ways the state can change tax laws to encourage business investment. Banks are often reluctant to loan money for start-up companies, as it’s a riskier investment.