The show me state shows Wisconsin what could happen

Things may be bad in Missouri. But they are even worse in Wisconsin. That is the gist of an editorial in a St. Louis newspaper that is critical of overly generous tax incentives for private companies. The column is critical of Missouri’s efforts to provide $3.5 billion to Boeing to get them to build airplanes in that state. Despite the generous offer, the jobs remained in Washington state, where they provided an even bigger taxpayer-funded subsidy. But since then, Boeing has cut its workforce by 15% and has spent $30 billion on stock buybacks, rewarding executives and investors. Even as Boeing has shed jobs, its stock price has risen by 91% this year. Sounds like they didn’t really need a subsidy. In Wisconsin, our government has promised $3 billion to Foxconn to build a big plant near Racine. That pricetag keeps climbing, now topping $4 billion when adding in costs of local incentives and highway improvements. That $4 billion works out to $1774 for every household in Wisconsin. And it will be at least 2043, if ever, that Wisconsin will recoup its massive investment. That is assuming Foxconn upholds its end of the deal. As the Missouri editorial points out, that state has spent a lot on corporate giveaways, but it is even worse in Wisconsin.