Florida sees positive October growth, but it still falls short of benchmark

Gov. Rick Scott's promise to create 700,000 jobs in seven years got a boost in October, with the state adding 14,700 jobs.

That puts the total number of jobs created since Scott took office in January 2011 at 154,000.

The job growth is part of a larger story about Florida's improving economy after a less-than-ideal summer.

Scott celebrated the state's declining unemployment rate, which hit its lowest point in almost four years in October. At 8.5 percent, the rate is still higher than the national unemployment rate.

In a news release, he counted off several signs of growth, including increases in job postings, an uptick in consumer confidence and a trade surplus. He delighted in the creation of 12,100 private sector jobs and ignored the fact that government jobs got a 2,600-position boost.

"We are creating an environment that fosters job creation, economic development and provides a skilled workforce," he said in the release. "My number one goal is to create jobs for Florida families and get this state back to work. There is still more work that needs to be done, but I'm confident we're on the right path."

As Scott pointed out, much work remains for the state to add 700,000 jobs through 2017. As a candidate, Scott pledged those jobs would come on top of normal growth, bringing the true desired total to 1.7 million jobs.

State economists expected Florida to generate 1 million jobs through 2017 through normal growth. Scott said his seven-step plan would create 700,000 jobs on top of what they projected.

"Our plan is seven steps to 700,000 jobs, and that plan is on top of what normal growth would be," Scott said during a debate sponsored by Leadership Florida and the Florida Press Association.

To do that, Scott needed to create an average of 20,238 jobs a month since his January 2011 start-date. He netted job gains of 14,700 in October, but it falls short of that benchmark.  

In office, Scott has backed down from his campaign remarks, saying Florida would grow by only 700,000 without accounting for normal growth. Scott's press team has been critical of our stories about Scott's campaign promise, even publishing a "fact check” of our previous promise update.

His team pointed to the positive direction of job growth since August and said Scott's focus on job creation is as relentless as ever.

We don't deny Scott is laser-focused on employment.

Still, he is far short of his specific goal to create 700,000 jobs on top of normal growth. That does not mean the overall jobs picture is dimming for Florida under Scott; in fact, the state's economy shows many signs of perking up over recent months.

But Florida's recent job-creation pace is not yet strong enough for Scott to be on track to meet his stated campaign goal. This promise remains Stalled.