The incentives game
A reader notes the illogical conclusion of local efforts to pay corporate welfare to bribe plants to locate in their fair communities. Another community just up the road might up the welfare payment. See sad (mad) Newport and happy Pocahontas.
Comments
Any company that will relocate to your community because you give them the farm will relocate to any other community that will give them the farm plus a henhouse.
You'd think Arkansas would have learned this bitter lesson since we've been doing it over and over again since the 1950s.
The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over while expecting the result will be different.
Posted by: Claude Bahls![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.arktimes.com/blogs/arkansasblog/nav-commenters.gif)
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January 6, 2009 09:12 AM
It doesn't even sound like New Grange got the henhouse in Pocohontas, Claude. From a closer reading of the article, it seems the company got about $250,000 from Newport five or six years ago, then moved on over to Pocohontas for about half that, perhaps when they figured the agreement/contract they had with Newport had run its course. All I can say is that Pocohontas seems to have gotten a really, really good corporate citizen. I hope they have an ironclad agreement . . .
Posted by: Doigotta![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.arktimes.com/blogs/arkansasblog/nav-commenters.gif)
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January 6, 2009 10:24 AM
To all who delight in repeatedly whining about "the incentive game," I'd like to see your posts offering reasonable, workable alternatives to recruiting industry and jobs to this state; union jobs or otherwise. Surely, you don't think The Natural State's "fresh air and beautiful mountains, lakes, and streams" would be incentive enough. Or do you?
Posted by: durangokid![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.arktimes.com/blogs/arkansasblog/nav-commenters.gif)
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January 6, 2009 11:10 AM