Missourinet has an interesting ex post facto plug for why we should all love Bombardier.
Does it say if Kansas City or Bombardier is responsible for actually building the thing? Does it say what to do if, like their Canadian loans, they DON'T pay them all back?Creators of the tax credit program pronounce it unlike any other economic development tool in the nation or maybe in the world [was that a pun? the French language is hard for some people!]. It provides millions but it also says no tax credits will be given until people are on the job..and the company has to pay back all of that money over time, with a five percent interest.
Although legislators think Missouri's chances are 50-50 at worst...and maybe as good as 75-25 that Bombardier will build its factory here, they think the state will still win if the company decides to stay in Montreal. They say this kind of tax credit structure can be used for the next mega-industrial development project anywhere in Missouri and if local communities want to base their own business development tax-incentive packages on the state structure, they are welcome to.
So let me get this straight. Legislators DON'T want Bombardier to come here? But they put together a package under the guise of luring them here, all the while in "talks" with the company. Raise your hand if you feel played. Now, if what they wanted to do was make a sexy tax credit package, why didn't they just do that, and why aren't WE the ones taking the highest bidder?
Last concern: what happens if an excessive number of new Missouri businesses avail themselves of this tax credit? I don't see it as a likelihood, but if the cap on tax credits offered is only per business, then the real amount of tax credits could be anything. If I understand that correctly, we've just opened the doors to a flood of uncontrollable spending, with an uncontrollable affect on the budget, and turned the State into a corporate welfare office.
I guess we'll have to make new license plates for sure now.
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