Lately, the Nevada agency has gone into hibernation. Somer Hollingsworth, its president, said it's pointless to mount an ad campaign in California when companies say they're too nervous to relocate.
That could change. If California raises taxes to patch its budget deficit, companies will be more receptive to overtures from Nevada, he said.
"If they pass these taxes that they're talking about, these businesses that are almost frozen like a deer in the headlights are going to start moving," he said. "They're very nervous about what kind of taxes are going to be laid on them."
Other issues come into play. Sacramento has been hit very hard by cutbacks in air service, making the region less desirable for corporations. Sacramento International Airport has lost 13.2 percent of its passenger seats in a year's time. Only nine other large cities have fared worse, according to an analysis by USA Today of schedule data from the Official Airline Guide.
But it's the shaky economy that appears to be the biggest factor influencing relocation decisions.
SACTO, for instance, has persuaded an overseas green-technology company to bring 50 or 60 manufacturing jobs to Sacramento. But the company at the last minute decided to hold off, pending its fourth-quarter financial results.
"That's kind of a sign of the times," said Hayes, SACTO's executive director. "People are ready to go (but) just waiting."
Still, SACTO's phones keep ringing, she said. The volume of inquiries from corporations hasn't diminished.
In particular, Sacramento is getting plenty of attention from the green-tech industry, a sector of the economy that community leaders have singled out in the past couple of years.
Green firms are looking at Sacramento in part because of the presence of policymakers implementing AB 32, the state's global-warming law. A few European companies have opened U.S. headquarters in the area, including European solar companies SMA Technologie and SunTechnics.
Sacramento landed OptiSolar and its solar-panel factory following a year of recruitment. The East Bay company was persuaded in part by $20 million in tax breaks approved by Sacramento County supervisors. OptiSolar said its factory at McClellan would employ up to 1,000 workers some day.
But problems arose when OptiSolar went looking for new financing in September. The markets were drying up.
"In October it was more and more obvious, and in November it was staring us in the face," said company spokesman Alan Bernheimer.
OptiSolar suspended construction at McClellan in November, and in early January it laid off 105 of the plant's 175 workers. As a result, the tax breaks and other incentives haven't kicked in.
Sacramento officials haven't given up on OptiSolar. But its troubles have provided a dose of realism about young companies in new industries.
"OptiSolar was really a bright spot for our region – they came on in such a big way," Hayes said. "But it's a startup company. People forgot that, or overlooked that."
Call The Bee's Dale Kasler at (916) 321-1066. Read his blog on the economy, Home Front, at www.sacbee.com/blog.
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