Businessweek reported last week that Lenoir, N.C., a town of 17,000 has successfully woo’d Google to locate some of its networked computer systems to its city. In return for Google’s presence, Lenoir’s wheeler-dealers have promised $5.87 million in annual tax rebates, or a 98% discount on Google’s annual tax bill. 
We’re used to hearing about economic development professionals offering generous tax incentives for automobile and other well-paid manufacturing jobs. Now the targets are expanding to include high tech, biotech and financial service firms.
At what cost? In The Great American Jobs Scam, author Greg LeRoy considers such vast corporate tax-dodging schemes nothing more than public welfare for companies who can afford to be better citizens. The finger is pointed in three directions:
- Site selection consultants who know how to use fear and hope to weasel greater incentives from public officials;
- Public officials who buckle to the pressure of well financed site selectors and their even better-financed clients, and
- The companies themselves. In Google’s case, their market capitalization is greater than Ford, General Motors and Boeing combined. Surely, they could afford a few mill in taxes to Lenoir?
What do you think? Are cities paying too much to lure businesses? Take the survey, and see the results.
