ALFRED — York County Commissioners last week agreed that they need a lot more information before they’re prepared to add $100,000 to next year’s budget for a program that matches moneyed immigrants with local investment opportunities.

Questions by commissioners Wednesday ranged from who would administer the program to whether the county would recoup the $100,000 investment.

The subject was the federal EB-5 regional program, whereby foreign investors are offered opportunities to invest capital in local projects within a defined region. Investors who do so attain a three-year visa and the opportunity to apply for permanent residency status.

The EB-5 program was introduced by County Manager Greg Zinser. The county’s town and city managers have been discussing the program, but the estimated $100,000 tab to prepare and guide an EB-5 application through the process was seen as too expensive for any one municipality to finance, Zinser explained.

“It’s another tool in the arsenal for us to utilize,” to foster economic development, Zinser told county commissioners.

Commissioners would have to agree to add the money to the county’s upcoming budget and the proposal would also have to pass the scrutiny of the county budget committee. Budget meetings will be starting within the next several weeks; the county operates on a fiscal year that begins July 1.

The EB-5 program is administered through the federal Citizenship and Immigration Service of the Department of Homeland Security, which sets aside a number of visas for foreign investors. It has been increasingly popular. According to an August 2014 Los Angeles Times report, the program in 2014 ran out of its annual allotment of visas for the first time in its 24-year history. 

A regional EB-5 program would allow those from outside the United States to invest money ”“ at least $1 million, or $500,000 in some rural areas ”“ into a variety of new and existing businesses that create jobs in exchange for visas under certain circumstances. Investors in regional EB-5 programs are not required to take an active role in the businesses in which they invest; jobs created may be direct and indirect, and regional centers may pool funds to fund larger investment projects, according to information prepared by U.S. Sen. Angus King’s office.

With a regional EB-5, a governmental entity would be designated to be the filter for those seeking to invest. 

That prospect raised liability issues with Commissioner Gary Sinden, who also wondered if the county would recoup its $100,000 investment, and why taxpayers in Parsonsfield or Cornish, in the northernmost regional of the county, should be funding such a program..

Others pointed out there are some older manufacturing facilities in those areas and, they added, folks from those regions could benefit from jobs created in other parts of the county.

“The 27-acre mill complex in Sanford could draw from the rural towns for personnel,” Zinser pointed out.

Commissioner Marston Lovell said the prospect of EB-5 began stirring locally after Thornton Academy opened its doors to international students a few years ago. The students, for the most part, are the children of wealthy Chinese citizens, who are familiar with the EB-5 program, Lovell said. He explained that regional EB-5 programs, where a governmental organization administers and filters the program, are seen as beneficial, so as to avoid investors being lured into what he described as false projects.

Commissioner Michael Cote wondered about the viability of an EB-5 program.

“I’d hate to get this going and find out no one is interested in investing,” Cote said. “We have to look at this cautiously.”

Sinden said he’d like to see investors inject seed money into projects without seed money from government. 

“I’ll keep an open mind but there’s not a lot of talk about (the program) in my district and the economy is improving,” Sinden said.

In a prior interview, Saco economic development director William Mann said York County’s location between Portland and Boston means it is ideally situated for those looking for a combination of proximity to the Atlantic Ocean, nearby mountains and the urban landscape within easy reach.

Zinser said interest in the program has already been voiced to some municipalities. He said there would be no liability issue.

Another EB-5 program exists in Maine. Approved in 2011, USA Lifestyles Inc. Regional Center includes greater Franklin County and Livermore Falls in Androscoggin County. Saddleback general manager Chris Farmer is the president of USA Lifestyles, Inc. and in a one-sentence reply to an email, said so far, no investors had taken advantage of the program there.

Marston pointed out that the program has been successful in Vermont, where, according to the state government website, $350 million has been invested by 700 investors 

Commissioners will discuss the prospect further at an upcoming meeting.

— Senior Staff Writer Tammy Wells can be contacted at 324-4444 (local call in Sanford) or 282-1535, ext. 327 or [email protected].