Economic Development Incentives: political and leadership debacle?
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I thought the incentives to Spirit/GTP were larger
Wasn't the total offered Spirit AeroSpace to locate at the Global Transpark around $250 million for a possible 1,000 jobs? Correct me if I am wrong please.
http://www.bizjournals.com/triangle/stories/2008/06/30/story1.html?page=all
I think
$100 million Gold Leaf Foundation - a 501c3 private foundation which provided a grant, not an "incentive" from the State
$36 million from State JDIG and One NC Fund
Article 3J state tax credits - over 7 years - not sure if they met conditions
Local - $35 million in road, rail and taxiway improvements at the
Global TransPark, plus another $14.7 million in property tax savings (local) over 10 years because the buildings will be owned by the Global TransPark Authority.
Other local incentives totaling $15.7 million in infrastructure improvements are being
forwarded to Spirit by different groups, according to commerce files.
For the MetLife, deal the amounts of the training credits (community colleges), JDIG and One NC Fund are the largest - we don't even know what the local incentives are going to be. Kind of splitting hairs but MetLife if largest STATE incentives package.
Wake County announced today that the project did not meet its program but they are working on an exception. Cary is as well. Not sure about Charlotte/Meck but I bet they are as well.
The $100,000,000 "grant"
I always thought that one grant of $100,000,000 to one company was rather a stretch. A grant or not, it was an incentive to get Spirit to the GTP. And let's not fool ourselves, the so-called grant was a political decision.
Just on the face of it I think the MetLife deal is a better deal for the state than the Spirit deal. But time will tell for both projects.
I am not a fan of incentives but it appears they are part and parcel of big business recruitment.
Concerns
I am concerned about all if them b/c even with claw backs, we can only fund so many so they need scrutiny.
MetLife is so large in a slow economic recovery & for only two counties. Here's why.
Under current law, the NC not permitted to incur more than $15 million in total JDIG liability every year.
MetLife incurs about $8 million in liability for 2013. So that leaves $7 million remaining for other projects this year and we have 52 of 100 counties w unemployment > 10%.
MetLife will not say how many people are coming here in the jobs, how many are new jobs. McCrory dodged reporters w questions. Odd. If it's all a good deal, take questions. Are we paying subsidies to cover the relocation expenses of out-of-state folks? That needs an answer.
McCrory was so set on reviewing these programs but instead he is using them quickly. That signals desperate to me. A desperate Gov not likely to make good decisions.
How many red states and how many blue states?
How many states would have spent the same amount to land MetLife? I'm thinking quite a few.
As for your statement: "So that leaves $7 million remaining for other projects this year and we have 52 of 100 counties w unemployment > 10%."
When push comes to shove the politicians can find the money to bring projects to the state. As mentioned above the Golden Leaf's $100 million dollar check to the Global Transpark for the Spirit deal. That was all about politics and trying to make the Global Transpark a "success." I was there at LCC when Easley made the announcement that he was glad the naysayers were proven wrong. However, the jury is still out on the Global Transpark and Spirit.
Then there was the General Assembly's loan of $25 million to the Global Transpark from the NC Escheats Fund. As you probably know the "loan" grew to some $44 million dollars. Then the General Assembly decided to start writing the debt off due to the Global Transpark's inability to pay. The Escheats Fund is, I believe, designed to assist deserving students here in North Carolina. How the money got to the Global Transpark is, I believe, called "politics."
As far as incentives go both parties will use them. Maybe they will be good and maybe they will be bad but I would not think they will be abandoned by the party in power.
Then
McCrory should have been upfront and not lied then. No reason to campaign on a pure lie.
Now he avoided the press and questions about his close associates involvement and the role of his former firm.
No good comes of political lies. So whatever the political deal no good comes of it for the people of NC
Thanks for the polite and intelligent discourse. We shall see what happens!
Addendum
QUESTIONS MOUNT ABOUT THE INCENTIVES: At the same time, Charlotte area officials are raising questions about whether the incentives were even necessary to lure the company to the city, where half the 2,600 jobs will be located. On Saturday, less than 24 hours after a press conference announcing the deal, county commissioners questioned whether MetLife knew it was coming to Charlotte before commissioners on Tuesday gave preliminary approval for the incentives.
Commissioners Chairwoman Pat Cotham said questions about the timing of the incentives vote started to enter her mind when news broke that the company had picked North Carolina and media events were arranged – only two days after the commissioners voted. Later, she learned that some MetLife executives had already been picking out schools and colleges for their children. “In my opinion, the deal was done when we first learned of it and voted for incentives,” Cotham, a Democrat, wrote in her first email to commissioners on Saturday.
Read more here: http://projects.newsobserver.com/under_the_dome/morning_memo_questions_m...
Dodging reporters better;
Dodging reporters better; this makes no sense via @binker at WRAL: McCrory re: MetLife incentives
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