City Council supports $21 million incentives for Dun & Bradstreet move to Jacksonville

Dun & Bradstreet will get $21 million in city taxpayer incentives by trading New Jersey for Jacksonville as its corporate headquarters.

Jacksonville City Council unanimously voted Tuesday for a development agreement that exceeded the typical limits on incentives in forging a deal that will bring the finance analytics company's headquarters from Short Hills, N.J.

The city incentives will entail $6 million in relocation grants, up to $3 million for the firm hitting employment targets of 500 jobs over a five-year period, and $12 million spread over 20 years in additional cash grants. Those annual grants of $600,000 per year would be dependent on Dun & Bradstreet maintaining its headquarters in Jacksonville.

The state of Florida will put forward another $4 million in incentives.

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At the request of City Council member Brenda Priestly Jackson, the council added a provision that says Dun & Bradstreet will have a goal of filling 20 percent of its headquarters positions by hiring applicants who have lived at least two years in Duval County or are graduates of a college or university in Duval County.

Priestly Jackson said that since county taxpayers are footing the bill for incentives, they should have a shot at getting the jobs paying an average of $77,000 a year.

"That's outstanding," she said. "That is a good quality of life, and so we definitely want to encourage the opportunity to exist for our neighbors here in Jacksonville."

Dun & Bradstreet would not face any financial consequences for not meeting the 20 percent goal, but it would disclose in annual reports to the city how many local residents have been hired.

Some City Council members have raised questions about other economic development deals that were heavy on incentives, but the Dun & Bradstreet legislation sailed through committees last week and at the Tuesday council meeting with little discussion.

The return on investment for City Hall financially would be 49 cents for each $1 dollar from taxpayers, according to the city's Office of Economic Development.

Supporters of the incentives have said the impact on Jacksonville goes beyond the city's bank account because landing a firm like Dun & Bradstreet shines a light on Jacksonville's growing clout in the finance sector and will draw attention from other companies looking for places to locate and expand.

Jacksonville-based mortgage services company Black Knight Inc. was part of an investor group that bought Dun & Bradstreet and last year carried out an initial public offering on the New York Stock Exchange.

Black Knight CEO Anthony Jabbour has had a dual role as Dun & Bradstreet CEO since 2019.

Dun & Bradstreet will put down Jacksonville roots by purchasing an existing building for $67 million and investing an additional $8 million in building improvement such as information technology equipment, furniture and fixtures, according to the Office of Economic Development.

The company has not said where the building is located.