Available data indicates that the demand for public access to coastal waterways may be outstripping the supply of public boat ramps and other facilities. While the state has created several programs to enhance public access, these programs may not be able to counteract the economic forces that make it more profitable for marina owners to sell their waterfront property. The Legislature may wish to direct a state agency to monitor and periodically report on trends in public access to coastal waters.Some boat manufacturers have recently left Florida to relocate in another state or expanded their operations outside the state. These manufacturers cited factors such as high property taxes; higher in-state costs for insurance, land acquisition, and labor; and financial incentives as factors in their decisions to leave Florida or expand in other states. Some of the other states' incentive programs have less stringent wage requirements than Florida.

The Legislature may wish to consider several options for enhancing the state's efforts to retain marine industry businesses. Such options include

• changing qualifications for existing incentive programs,
• creating a marine industry-specific incentive, and
• requiring Enterprise Florida, Inc., to create a unit that would focus on retaining or recruiting marine industry companies.