Florida gets a good return on its investment when it spends money on its beaches. That’s according to a study from the state’s top economists.
Chief Economist Amy Baker says the study looked into three factors – the draw of Florida’s beaches, the return on investment gained from beach-related spending, and the impact on negative events like hurricanes.
“What we found is we get a return on our invested dollars of $5.41. So that means it recovers all of its cost and is actually bringing additional money into the state as a result of the activity we generate,” Baker says.
But Baker says disasters like hurricanes can mean the state loses a lot of money. She says a major hurricane could cost the state about $80 million for beach restoration. And could result in a loss of about $57 million from reduced tourism.
