The Spectacle Blog
$3.7 Million to Move 60 Miles
“North Carolina has never met a targeted tax break it didn’t like,” as my Heartland Institute colleague Steve Stanek said today, but this one has to take the cake.
“North Carolina has never met a targeted tax break it didn’t like,” as my Heartland Institute colleague Steve Stanek said today, but this one has to take the cake. From The Charlotte Observer:
Continental Automotive announced Monday that it will expand its plant in Fletcher – just south of Asheville – with 338 jobs averaging $36,179 in wages per year. The facility makes brake calipers, which squeeze the wheel to slow vehicles.
Continental will receive up to $2.2 million in state grants for bringing the positions. Henderson County offered up to $1 million over seven years in tax rebates, and Fletcher added up to $500,000 in the same period.
In May, the company told the state it laid off 90 people at its Morganton anti-lock brake plant after Chrysler filed for bankruptcy.
For a company to move 90 jobs just 60 miles within a state and get $3.7 million for its trouble is beyond absurd. Meanwhile the NC legislature (and the governor) are prepared to pass $1 billion in new taxes for the next state budget. Add in the rampant corruption in recent history, how can the Democrats continue to hold power? They keep winning elections, so they will probably find a way.
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ncatty| 7.22.09 @ 11:41AM
I live here and I don't understand how we elect Republicans to the occasional US Senate or House seat but return the Democrats consistently to the General Assembly and Governor's mansion. Its like there are two sets of voters.
JP| 7.22.09 @ 12:18PM
Just last week, my hometown got the County to triple the payroll tax. The city is forecasting a $20 million shortfall for FY2010, and the increased payroll tax will cut it in half (so they say).
However, this morning the mayor announced that he wants to add a new high level position (Director of Green Technologies) to his staff. He said a federal grant will pay for this position for 2 whole years, and after that the savings the city would see from this person's work would more than pay for his salary and benefits.
So my city spent a month warning of dire consequences if it didn't get the new payroll tax. It said it already cut its budget to the bone and is considering elminating firemen and policemen- things are really that bad, they say. But today, the mayor wants to add a $70,000 per year position to his staff in order to study how green technologies can cut costs. Sounds like Biden's quip that to avoid bankruptcy the government must spend more money.