Foxconn deal details sorely lacking

It is the biggest government giveaway in the state’s history, and the largest government subsidy to a foreign company by any state ever. But we still don’t know much about the proposed deal with Foxconn Technology Group that would bring a huge production facility to the state. We’ve heard about promises of 10,000, perhaps even 13,000 jobs. And we know that the state legislature has approved a $3 billion incentive deal to lure them here. But of course the devil is in the details, and we don’t know much about those details. The Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation is the next step in the approval process. The board met this week, but did so only in closed session, and ended up taking no action. That is despite the fact that the original agreement called for a deal to be reached by the end of September. There are many reasons for concern. Lawmakers who approved the $3 billion incentive package did so without even knowing all the details of the deal. All of the discussions have been held behind closed doors. And now we’ve learned that one member of the WEDC board says they discovered a problem in the language of the proposal, which he called “a nuclear bomb” that would result in a deal that doesn’t protect taxpayers. Not exactly comforting news, given that the state is about to give away $3 billion of our money. Taxpayers deserve to know the details of what they want, and what we are willing to give. These discussions should be held in the light of day. There should be much greater scrutiny of this deal given what is on the line. The taxpayers of this state deserve that.