Corporate Welfare Weekly - February 8, 2010 – Issue 36

 

Hypocrite of the Week!

 

Michael Moore, the controversial film-maker and liberal political commentator, who has long railed against film tax credits and corporate welfare, apparently thinks he is immune to his own arguments!

 

While there is a plethora of political topics we could argue with Michael Moore about, for the purpose of this newsletter, I would like to focus on just one, corporate incentives. Mr. Moore applied for and was granted Michigan film tax credits for his anti-capitalist movie “Capitalism: A Love Story.”

 

What makes this news so repulsive is not simply that he took advantage of benefits offered to him from the state, but he did so after consistently lashing out against this very thing in his public life as well as in his movies. Michigan’s Mackinac Center for Public Policy published an article on January 28, 2010, written by Michael D. Lafaive, the Center’s fiscal policy director, detailing the blatant hypocrisy that Michael Moore has brought to light:

 

“Because the state [of Michigan] faces another large budget deficit, there is serious talk about reducing or eliminating the $100 million-plus boondoggle [the Michigan Film Incentive]. Knowing from the start that their program is vulnerable to economic realities (not to mention political ones and common sense), film incentive officials should have been relatively sensitive about avoiding whiffs of impropriety.

So it is baffling to see the state offer Michigan filmmaker Michael Moore a refundable tax credit for his documentary "Capitalism: A Love Story." This subsidy should be rejected by Moore on principle alone.

 

…Moore’s acceptance of the Michigan film incentive subsidy is troubling because he has grown wealthy railing against corporations and capitalist institutions – such as Wall Street – for enriching themselves at the expense of the little guy and tax payers.”

 

Moore, who has long claimed to be against film tax credits and corporate incentives in general, because of the burden on taxpayers, has asked those very taxpayers to subsidize his work through those very credits. This screams hypocrisy and due to Moore’s current membership on the Michigan Film Office Advisory Council, also screams of a conflict of interest!

 

As Paul Chesser, a special correspondent for the Heartland Institute and director of Climate Strategies Watch, so eloquently describes in his American Spectator blog, “Oh, the wonderful crony-istic irony of the burly man extracting kickbacks from the state Film Office to help cut his costs – especially after being appointed to their advisory board!”

 

Moore’s reasoning for this? “I am under pressure from the studio to do this.” In my opinion, Michael Moore does not seem like the kind of person to take orders? I just don’t buy it!

 

~ Shelley L. Gonzales

 

Recent Announcements…

 

$107,170 in tax incentives grants was approved on Monday, February 1, by the Statesville City Council for an unnamed furniture company to expand its local operations.

                ~ Jim McNally, Statesville Record & Landmark, February 4, 2010

 

$100,000 to Commonwealth Brands Inc. from the state’s One North Carolina Fund to add a product line for its cigarette tubes. The Corporate Welfare Weekly’s issue #34 previously reported that the company is also eligible to receive an additional $83,207 from the City of Reidsville and $81,600 from Rockingham County.

                ~ Richard Craver, Winston-Salem Journal, February 4, 2010

 

$341,000 in local incentives has been approved for Kewaunee Scientific Corporation, a localStatesville laboratory furniture manufacturer. The company is to receive $184,000 from Iredell County and $157,000 from the City of Statesville. The furniture manufacturer announced it will be expanding its operations and renovating its corporate headquarters.

                ~ Joe Marusak, Charlotte Observer, February 4, 2010

 

$50,000 in incentives has been approved for Solaris Industries, Inc. from the One North Carolina Fund. The international manufacturer of steel tubing will build a new manufacturing facility in the Cleveland Town of Kings Mountain. All One North Carolina Fund grants require a local match.

                ~ Chris Baysden, Triangle Business Journal, February 3, 2010

 

Quotes of the Week…

 

“The power of taxation shall be exercised in a just and equitable manner, for public purposes only, and shall never be surrendered, suspended, or contracted away.”

                ~ North  Carolina State Constitution: Article V, Section 2(1)

 

"While we don't blame Mr. Moore and his production team for taking what is offered, it's striking that a movie focused on the inequities of granting taxpayer dollars to private enterprise would apply for and receive taxpayer-funded incentives."

~  Michael LaFaive, fiscal policy director at the Mackinac Center.

 

But we gave them millions in incentives!

 

The Charlotte Observer reported in a February 5 article written by Rick Rothacker that GMAC is eliminating 114 more Charlotte jobs after receiving $4.5 million in incentives last March from state and local officials to expand.

 

“GMAC Financial Services is downsizing in Charlotte once again.

 

The Detroit-based lender this week told state officials it was eliminating 115 jobs as it closes offices in South Park and near Charlotte/Douglas International Airport.

 

…The reductions were part of an effort to streamline expenses in both business units, spokeswoman Gina Proia said. The work in the closing facilities is being transferred to larger GMAC locations.

 

…‘We have a substantial corporate presence in Charlotte that has about doubled in size last year,’ Proia said. ‘Despite these business line actions, Charlotte remains an important corporate center for GMAC.’

 

In March, state and local officials approved more than $4.5 million in incentives to persuade GMAC to expand in Charlotte. In return, the company said it planned to add a net 200 jobs over two years.

 

Joint Venture seeks to raise money for expansion…

 

The Triangle Business Journal reported in a February 4 article written by Chris Baysden that Generations Brands joint venture seeks to raise $5 million to help their Cary expansion.

 

“JuiceWorks, an LED lighting joint venture between Cary-based Generation Brands and Juice Technologies, is working to raise $5 million over the next three to six months in order to expand its product development.

 

If JV’s fundraising is successful, it could lead to the creation of a dozen new jobs in Cary, says Generation Brands President and CEO T. Tracy Bilbrough.”

 

Don’t you admire a company that seeks to raise the money they need to expand instead of asking the government to give them taxpayer money?

 

Reminder…

 

The Corporate Welfare Weekly recently launched an effort to identify ANY company doing businesses in North Carolina who plans to expand, relocate within the state, or simply create new jobs – but ISN’T getting any incentive from the state or local government.

 

Email Shelley Gonzales at gonzales@ncicl.org