Sorry…I mean “incentives” to lure companies to Virginia. The folks screeching the loudest are those who hand out the goodies:
Martin J. Briley, president and chief executive of the partnership, warned state senators earlier this month that the Governor’s Opportunity Fund was “critically underfunded.” According to his presentation: “In the very near future, lack of funding will jeopardize viability of funds.”
Sandi McNinch, general counsel at the partnership, said it hasn’t helped that over the past four years governors and lawmakers have “raided” the fund, dumping $29 million into the general fund to meet other needs.
“We’ve been assured by the administration that they will find funds for us that will be put back into the GOF when we need it,” she said. “We don’t want to have to rely on the kindness of strangers.”
I’ll give them points for candor and brass. And preening arrogance. Then again, Virginia has become so wedded to corporate welfare that a sense of entitlement among the check writers was bound to arise.
But we must never forget that the money handed out to a few companies to set up shop in the state is not delivered by a stork. It comes from taxpayers, including those business owners who find themselves subsidizing the competition. And we must also never forget (even though the economic developers dismiss it), that JLARC study which couldn’t really say whether incentives made a difference in corporate location decisions.
And good morning, Del. Landes. I see in Jenna’s article that you “bristle” at the notion any of this is corporate welfare.
That’s funny.
