Media Coverage
2026:
Kansas City Business Journal: ‘(Expletive) nuts:’ Economists sound off on KC’s $600M Royals deal ahead of council vote
Governing: The World Cup Is an Economic Bonanza? Think Again.
The Bond Buyer: Oklahoma City to sell revenue bonds for NBA Thunder’s arena
Richmond Magazine: Big Projectitis
Reason: Republicans Fumble Away Fiscal Conservatism in Stadium Subsidy Projects
Battle Creek Enquirer: No, data centers are not assembly lines
The New York Times: Can Michigan Become the U.S. Drone Capital?
Carolina Journal: NC auditor to oversee Charlotte’s $650M stadium renovation
Automotive News: Michigan’s risky $1 billion EV bet looks bleak, but story isn’t finished
Kansas City Business Journal: Reading the blitz
Mountain State Spotlight: West Virginia could get nothing in taxes from data centers for a decade under proposed bill
Kansas City Business Journal: Olathe and the UG face tight deadline for pledging taxes for Chiefs projects
Reason: There Are No Good Reasons To Subsidize Sports Stadiums. Governments Keep Doing It Anyway.
Mississippi Independent: Mississippi’s data center boom and growing national opposition
The Center Square: Pritzker: State will not build stadium for Bears
Tampa Bay Times: Public subsidies for stadiums are exploding. Can Tampa Bay keep up?
Mississippi Today: Mississippi Marketplace: Elon Musk investing billions in Southaven data center operations
Pontotoc Progress (MS): Gov. Reeves announces over $100-million in economic development projects
2025:
Jackson Clarion Ledger: This MS project was named America’s worst development for 2025. Why?
Greenwood Commonwealth (MS): Mississippi Data Center Project Named 2025’s “Worst Economic Development Deal of the Year” by The Center for Economic Accountability
Kansas City Business Journal: Kansas’ Chiefs STAR bond district could span 293 square miles; public cost could top $6.3B
Detroit News: Michigan should ditch corporate welfare for good
The Midwesterner: House Oversight testimony questions Whitmer’s foreign travel, calls trips ‘VIP working vacations’
Michigan Advance: Michigan House committee continues to probe Gotion after state pulls funding support
WILX-TV: Michigan lawmakers question Governor’s foreign trips funding
The Midwesterner: Whitmer, MEDC, secret companies that fund ‘investment missions’: ‘It’s a corporate welfare circle of life’
Bridge Michigan: Lawmakers: Michigan needs to disclose details of failed Gotion deal
Michigan Capitol Confidential: Whitmer whiffs at real auto jobs numbers, again
Washington Examiner: Pritzker open to spending on Bears infrastructure, concerns remain about debt
Cleveland Business Journal: SoftBank affiliate completes acquisition of former Foxconn EV plant
The Ledger: Two dozen companies benefit from Polk County property tax breaks aimed at creating jobs
MLive: Massive megasite incentives aren’t working, state legislators told
Detroit News: Defund the MEDC. Period.
National Review: Corporations Have a Responsibility to Not Fleece Taxpayers
Crain’s Detroit Business: Hudson’s Detroit hasn’t yet lured new office users to the city
Ohio.News: Economist questions Ohio Tax Credit Authority approval of JobsOhio tax incentives for three projects
The Black Chronicle: Atlanta picked as Rivian’s East Coast headquarters
Louisville Courier-Journal: Kentucky makes dumb choices about data centers. You may foot the power bill.
Daily Wire: A Tale Of Two Kansas Cities: Chiefs And Royals Spark Political Battle With Potential Stadium Moves
Huron Daily Tribune: The Right Place CEO Randy Thelen appears before Michigan House
Kansas City Business Journal: Economists: Here’s what’s wrong with Missouri’s incentive plan for Royals, Chiefs stadiums
Kansas City Star: Missouri leaders say plan to keep Chiefs, Royals will boost economy. Experts disagree
KCTV5: Missouri lawmakers respond to proposed incentives to keep Chiefs, Royals
Kansas City Star: The looming ‘big concern’ that could threaten Chiefs’ & Royals’ stadium efforts
Reason: The New Stadium Scam Is a Server Farm
Kansas City Star: Kansas program aims to draw Chiefs, Royals. Does it fuel growth or pick winners & losers?
Bridge Michigan: Top 10 subsidies under Whitmer: Michigan spends $900M; firms create 4,200 jobs
Bridge Michigan: Whitmer subsidy record: Companies get $1 billion; jobs fall short of promises
Michigan Capitol Confidential: Michigan electric vehicle maker to close two locations after pocketing $900,000 subsidy
National Review: Get the Federal Government Out of States’ Economic Development Wars
Michigan Capitol Confidential: Michigan’s auto industry boondoggle: billions in subsidies, 287,000 jobs lost
Deadline Detroit: If Michigan Trees Could Talk, They’d Declare Gov. Whitmer Public Enemy No. 1
The Bond Buyer: Oklahoma City seeks arena financing proposals amid Southwest sports stampede
WBAV-FM: Carolina Panthers’ $650M Renovation Deal Slammed as ‘Worst Economic Development’
Raleigh News & Observer: Open Source: NC’s growth ingredients | IBM explains H-1B visa use | Net neutrality nixed
WCCB-TV: BOA renovation project named “Worst Economic Development Deal of the Year”
Site Selection Magazine: Investor Watch: January 6, 2025
WSOC-TV: Bank of America incentive named Worst Economic Deal of the Year
Axios: Charlotte wins “Worst Economic Development Deal” award for $650M Panthers stadium renovations
2024:
The Center Square: Dynasty: Charlotte, Panthers infamously deliver North Carolina’s 3rd award
Deadline Detroit: Why Oklahoma Can Make Gov. Whitmer and her MEDC Cronies Feel Better About Themselves
Telegraph Herald: Property taxes impact economic growth
Carolina Journal: Charlotte’s $650 million splurge on BofA Stadium renovations named 2024’s ‘Worst Economic Development Deal of the Year’
Developer.com: Economic Development Incentives; What Is The Success Rate?
Georgia Sun: Rivian back on track after $6B federal loan for Georgia plant
Michigan Capitol Confidential: Michigan House OKs tax breaks for data centers
Michigan Capitol Confidential: Michigan taxpayers give $200,000 for NASCAR-owned race track
National Review: Economic-Development Agencies Make Promises They Can’t Keep
Nonprofit Quarterly: Corporate Economic Blackmail and What to Do about It
Crain’s Chicago Business: Let the billionaire owners pay for their teams’ stadiums themselves
Michigan Capitol Confidential: Michigan lags nationwide COVID recovery
CBS News Detroit: Fans, Detroit officials speak on plan for new Detroit City FC stadium
Crain’s Detroit Business: Detroit City FC soccer stadium construction will likely seek taxpayer subsidies
The Center Square: Expert says non-binding memo isn’t necessarily cause for concern
Michigan Capitol Confidential: Lawmaker: $4.4B of corporate subsidies is ‘legislative malpractice’
Tampa Bay Times: Stadium subsidies are bad deals for communities like St. Petersburg
Michigan Capitol Confidential: New bipartisan innovation fund proposal reminiscent of past state grant program
Daily Caller: Red State Taxpayers Are At Risk Of Being Latest Victims Of Electric Vehicle Gambles
The Center Square: Michigan’s Whitmer spent $141,597 on five-day Taiwan trip
The Hill: Let voters decide on stadium subsidies
The Center Square: Taxpayers foot $4,526 coffeemaker, $11,000 flight for Michigan businesswoman
National Review: Adam Smith’s Economic Development Formula
Deadline Detroit: $26.4 Million Compensation For Ford’s Jim Farley Is Giant FU To Biden, Whitmer And UAW
The Center Square: Bears focus stadium plans on Chicago but costs are a concern
Bridge Michigan: Corporate subsidies cost Michigan $335M; 40% of deals create low-paying jobs
The Bond Buyer: Utah baits bids for MLB and NHL teams with bonds
The Center Square: Michigan gives Lucid $6M for Southfield EV hub
NewsCenter 1: White Sox subsidies critic questions economic impact of possible deal
Kansas City Star: KC Chiefs and Royals have our hearts. But they don’t need public money for stadiums
Carolina Journal: Towns are pushing for subsidized stadiums, while others struggle to keep them afloat
The Midwesterner: First responders have ‘become accustomed’ to fire runs at General Motors EV plant
Financial Post: Canada’s EV strategy has cost $4 million a job
Reason: State Governments Promised Private Companies More than $10 Billion in Subsidies Last Year
2023:
BNN: The Billion-Dollar Subsidy Race: U.S. States’ Investment in Private Firms
Battle Creek Enquirer: Nonprofit names EV battery plant in Marshall ‘worst economic development deal’
Reason: Ford E.V. Battery Plant in Michigan Named Worst Economic Development Deal of 2023
Michigan Farm News: Marshall battery plant awarded ‘America’s Worst Economic Development Deal of the Year’
Deadline Detroit: Whitmer’s $1.7B Subsidies For Ford Battery Plant Wins 2023 Taxpayer Rip-Off Award
Michigan Capitol Confidential: Ford Marshall plant dubbed worst deal of 2023
The Midwesterner: Gretchen Whitmer doubles down on EVs, gives $10 million to Volkswagen subsidiary
National Review: Stop Subsidizing Stadiums
Motor Mouth: Honda Invests $15 Million in Battery Cell Research Partnership with Ohio State University
Highland County Press: Automakers hit the brakes on electric vehicle production
The Center Square: Michigan’s Whitmer spent $285k on 7-day Japan trip
The Georgia Virtue: Georgia commissioner says incentives still needed to bring businesses to state
Authority Magazine: John Mozena Of Center for Economic Accountability: How We Plan To Rebuild In The Post COVID Economy
The Center Square: Ford pauses $3.5B electric vehicle plant despite $1.7B subsidy
Automotive News: Midwest confronts EV factory bidding wars
The Center Square: Taxpayers help pick up the tab for Mississippi’s first Buc-ee’s
The Center Square: Amazon Web Services plans to build two data centers in Louisa County
Reuters: DeSantis chose wrong Disney battle, right war
The Midwesterner: Detroit property tax shift spurs intense debate
The Center Square: Economic development grants selected
WNCN-TV (Raleigh, NC): Automaker comes to NC; these 3 big names also chose us
The Center Square: Michigan gives $6M to Bill Gates-backed company
MLIve: Billions given to EV projects better spent on roads, bridges, cutting taxes, critic says
The Black Chronicle: Grant increases, building constructions approved by development department
National Review: Ohio’s Long-Running Corporate-Welfare Farce Takes Another Absurd Turn
Daily Caller: Politicians from both parties are selling “sidewalk socialism.” It needs to end.
The Iowa Torch: Reynolds’ international trade trip draws criticism
The Center Square: Why is now the time for electric vehicles?
Nevada Independent: Give voters the final say on baseball stadium subsidies
Site Selection Magazine: Investor Watch: May 25, 2023
American City Business Journals: Billion-dollar incentive deals are rising, but one new study finds the spending ‘irrelevant’
Detroit Metro Times: Economists warn of Detroit Grand Prix’s financial risks to taxpayers
Reason: States Spend Billions on Economic Development Deals With Little Return
The Tennessee Star: Report: U.S. economic development departments pay big money for few gains
The Comeback: Athletics relocation hits huge roadblock; MLB world reacts
Crain’s Detroit Business: Ford’s $3.5 billion EV battery plant moves forward after Marshall vote
Now Habersham: Kemp announces DNR, Rivian partnership during event at Tallulah Gorge
The Center Square: Developers seek $123M from taxpayers for Grand Rapids project
The Center Square: Strategic fund approves $16.6M to support local projects
The National Herald: Senate Passes Deputy Leader Gianaris’ Ban on Secret Deals
The Center Square: Ford expects $3B loss on electric vehicles in 2023
Crain’s Detroit Business: On right-to-work, and economic development, Michigan must choose top-down or bottom-up
National Review: Losing Amazon’s HQ2 Was a Blessing
Atlanta Business Chronicle: What to know about the progress of Rivian’s Georgia plant
The Washington Post: Amazon says it is pausing construction at HQ2 in Arlington
The Center Square: Michigan starts $34M EV campaign; 25,181 registered statewide
The Center Square: Surprise $750M ask for Ford site prep confounds Michigan lawmakers
The Center Square: Tennessee spent $81M on site development grants since 2016
Big Rapids Pioneer: Big Rapids Township request review of Gotion battery plant, international risks it may attract
Crain’s Detroit Business: Michigan approves $1 billion in incentives for Ford EV battery plant
The Center Square: Michigan OKs $1B subsidy for $3.5B Ford plant
Bridge Michigan: Ford battery plant in Michigan rose from the state’s failure in 2021
Huron Daily Tribune: Big Rapids Township to host special meeting on battery factory
The Center Square: Economic development deals hinge on timing and information, observers say
The Center Square: Virginia dives deeper into the cold, dark world of data center subsidies
Atlanta Business Chronicle: Residents opposed to Rivian’s plant file lawsuits against state, Morgan County
The Center Square: West Virginia House committee approves portion of $290M in battery-plant incentives
Washington Examiner: Economic experts weigh Youngkin’s decision to halt Ford plant
Washington Post: Amazon launches $35 billion data center expansion in Virginia
Atlanta Business Chronicle: Report: Rivian executives depart from company
WDRB-TV (Louisville): Louisville was promised more than a soccer stadium in Butchertown. Where’s the rest?
Daily Yonder: Report: Rural Small Business Owners Feel Uncertain About Future
Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Senate committee endorses narrow reforms for development authorities
Uncover DC: Anti-Rivian Residents Stand Strong as Gov. Kemp Touts GA as Nation’s EV Hub
Site Selection Magazine: Investor Watch: January 19, 2023
Morgan County Citizen: Rivian named ‘Worst Economic Development Deal’ of 2022 by national economic watchdog group
The Georgia Virtue: Nonprofit names $1.5B Georgia Rivian EV plant incentive as worst deal of the year
2022:
Atlanta Business Chronicle: Rivian’s tax incentives from Georgia named worst economic development deal of the year
The Center Square: Form Energy to build facility in West Virginia steel town
National Review: It’s Time to Call Out America’s Corporate Welfare State
The Center Square: Legislature approval of $85M for QLine trolley elicits negative responses
Autobody News: Michigan’s Latest $526M Tax Incentive Harshly Criticized
WJR-AM: Mackinac on Michigan ~ Midterms Preview Edition
The Problem with Jon Stewart: How To Protect Your Community From Corporate Interests
The Center Square: Tennessee Titans stadium plan to be vetted by stadium committee on Oct. 26
Newport Plain Talk: Nashville announces plans for new Tennessee Titans stadium that will be mostly paid for by taxpayers
Bridge Michigan: Michigan gas prices are up again. Here is why.
Reason: Ohio Pledges Over $150 Million in Taxpayer Money for Honda Factories
Bridge Michigan: Michigan’s future: No flying cars, but plenty of corporate welfare
Bridge Michigan: Michigan lands two more EV battery plants, bringing up to 4,000 jobs
The Center Square: Michigan election software CEO charged with theft of poll-worker data, storing it in China
Atlanta Business Chronicle: State, local economic development officials assessing legal options after Rivian plant ruling
Crain’s Detroit Business: How Michigan aims to protect its $1 billion bet on EV battery plants
Kentucky Today: Do ‘incentives’ subsidize job creation or reelection campaigns?
Automotive News: China EV tech seen as critical, but tax breaks raise questions for Michigan
Atchison Globe: Kelly touts Goodyear Tire plant project that’s getting thousands in tax incentives
The Mountaineer: North Carolina highlighted in report on skyrocketing corporate subsidies
Tennessee Conservative: Large economic incentives like those in Tennessee increasing exponentially
American City Business Journals: Population migration, Goldman Sachs HQ: The National Observer Sept. 13, 2022
American City Business Journals: What shifting migration patterns mean for small businesses
Quad-City Times: Time for tax credit reform
The Center Square: Iowa will spend $16 million of ARPA funds on tourism projects
Illinois News Network: Coalition wants to end some NDAs
Kansas City Star: NDAs bar Kansas lawmakers from speaking about Panasonic factory details for years
Greensboro News & Record: Our Opinion: High-stakes poker at the speed of sound
News & Observer (Raleigh, NC): How NC nearly lost and ultimately beat out Florida for Boom Supersonic
The Center Square: Billionaire’s project gets $100M from Michigan taxpayers
Reason: Crony Capitalism Is Apparently Business-Friendly
Iosco County News-Herald: Analyst: $251M 2023 ‘economic development’ in Michigan’s won’t address taxpayer priorities
WDRB-TV (Louisville): ‘NOTHING LIKE THIS IN THE COUNTRY’
The Center Square: Detroit City Council again delays vote on $60M tax break
Crain’s Detroit Business: As new business-expansion fund runs lower, Michigan eyes permanent way to pay for it
The Center Square: Whitmer touts job numbers while analyst criticizes corporate welfare
News Is My Business: The web is specialized in deep dig investigation
Crain’s Detroit Business: Real Estate Insider: Detroit City Council member wants DEGC to ‘educate’ residents on benefits
Site Selection: “It’s Not Like They Need the Money”
The Center Square: Reynolds announces $20M Iowa Downtown Housing Grant program despite uncertainty in real estate market
The Hill: End the secrecy and misinformation in economic development
Fayetteville Observer: NC bets big with taxpayer money to land major projects, but are they good investments?
Fast Company: How companies like Amazon and Facebook fleece communities out of billions
The Center Square: Michigan electric vehicle battery plant receives $189M state subsidy
The Center Square: Analyst: GM, MEDC aim to fool taxpayers with bait and switch
Washington Times: Taxpayers line up to be sacked by the Washington Commanders
Grosse Pointe Times: Grosse Pointe Farms approves Black History Month proclamation
Baseball Prospectus: MLB’s Lockout Makes Stadium Subsidies Even Worse Deals Than Before
Detroit News: Why GM’s $824 million subsidy exemplifies unnecessary spending
Los Angeles Daily News: SoFi Stadium deal sweetens Rams victory
Mac Observer: How Much Does Apple Receive in Subsidies From U.S. States?
The Hill: Frustrated by a corporate handout ‘Groundhog Day’? Blame the American Rescue Plan
Detroit Metro Times: $21 million concert venue planned in Lansing
Michigan Public Radio: General Motors investing $7 billion in Michigan facilities to build electric vehicles
Triangle Business Journal: Workforce development, shovel-ready sites and more: NC commerce secretary on how state can keep its economy strong
Iosco County News-Herald: Whitmer celebrates last month’s addition of 11,000 jobs in Michigan
Cities 92.9-FM: Measure would ban non-disclosure agreements in Illinois economic development deals
WNCN-TV (Raleigh, NC): Was the NC’s deal with Apple ‘a really big win?’ Or the worst of the year?
Washington Examiner: Report: North Carolina-Apple agreement ‘worst economic deal’ of the year
2021:
Triangle Business Journal: North Carolina’s $846M package to bring Apple to RTP labeled worst economic development deal of 2021
WRAL-TV (Raleigh, NC): Bad Apple: Report calls deal for new NC campus ‘worst’ of the year – here’s why
24/7 Wall Street: What’s Up With Apple: Spending on Streaming Content, Trouble in Korea, and More
Carolina Journal: N.C.’s Apple deal named worst of 2021
The Center Square: Governor signs $1 billion bipartisan SOAR economic development package
Iosco County News-Herald: Michigan House passes economic development incentive package
The Center Square: Bipartisan bills aims to restore tax incentives for business development
Crain’s Detroit Business: Does downtown need residential pivot?
Nevada Tribune: Nevada offers 16 businesses $46 million in tax abatements
The Center Square: Analyst claims Michigan picking winners and losers in EV race
Washington Examiner: Iowa Economic Development Authority awarded tax break to company that created one job
KOAT-TV (Albuquerque): Ten other USL cities have recently built stadiums
Michigan Star: Gov. Whitmer Calls on Lawmakers to Boost Michigan Economic Development Corporation Funding
The Center Square: Free-market think tank president: ‘simply no evidence’ Iowa grants ‘are anything but useless’
Corp! Magazine: Experts: FCA Expansion Shows How Tax Incentives Can Pay Off
Des Moines Register: Time should be up for Iowa’s slate of terrible tax credits
Bangor Daily News: A different fiscal fix for state, local governments
St. Paul Pioneer-Press: Here’s a better fiscal fix for state and local governments
Crain’s Detroit Business: Michigan lawmakers may give The Mid developers a lifeline on brownfield tax credit
The Center Square: Critics question Gov. Whitmer’s $1.3 million spending on Holland private sector jobs
The Center Square: Michigan Strategic Fund to subsidize Traverse City housing; critics question need
City Journal: Back to Basics
RealClear Policy: Federal COVID Relief Imposes Truce in States’ Corporate Welfare Wars
Detroit News: How economic development is killing Michigan school funding
Newsweek: This Last-Minute Provision Blocks GOP Govs from Using Stimulus Money to Subsidize Tax Cuts
TaxNotes: Federal COVID-19 Relief Law Could Prevent New State Tax Incentives
The Center Square: Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak unveils ‘innovation zone’ legislation that would let tech companies establish their own local governments
WDRB-TV (Louisville): Aluminum company pleads for more time to build Ky. plant
The Hill: How your taxes subsidize the Super Bowl — and how that might change
The Center Square: Group calls on governor, legislature to end Texas Enterprise Fund, cut taxes instead
The Center Square: Whitmer pocket vetoes Meijer tax break, property tax deferment for hard hit businesses; Industry leaders want answers
2020:
Crain’s Detroit Business: Foxconn shows tax credits, subsidies are costly error
Liberty for Patriots: Michigan subsidizing private businesses with taxpayer money during budget crunch
The American Conservative: Want To Clean Up Money In Politics? Start With Corporate Welfare
Las Vegas Review-Journal: 2020 is no time for subsidies in Nevada
Providence Journal: Subsidizing a soccer stadium would be a bad bet for Pawtucket
WFMJ-TV (Youngstown, OH): GM Lordstown clawback deal gets mixed reaction
The Center Square: Ohio, General Motors reach deal on failed tax incentives in Lordstown
The Center Square: Two businesses moving to Fort Worth with $2.58 million in tax incentives
KPVI-TV: Texas tax incentive program has limits, supporters, critics
Newsday: A different fiscal fix for state, local governments
The Center Square: Business Facilities ranks Texas first for business, critics argue incentives hurt taxpayers the most
The Hill: Congress could use bailouts to solve the interstate subsidy war
FOX28 (Spokane): Better Cities Project, think tanks propose plan for getting Americans back to work
Kiowa County Press: $5.5 million in tax incentives used to attract new company to Colorado
WDRB-TV (Louisville): Hotel subsidies could add to Louisville’s budget problems
Crain’s Cleveland Business: Subsidy deals like Sherwin-Williams’ won’t grow Cleveland’s economy
The Center Square: ‘Struggling’ Detroit announces opening of new arts and culture office
WDRB-TV (Louisville): Cash-strapped Kentucky spends more on job subsidies than border states
The Detroit News: Detroiters pay too much for economic development deals
The Center Square: Gov. Whitmer’s State of the State: ‘Impatience is a virtue’
2019:
The Center Square: Legislators restore $575 mil of Gov. Whitmer’s $947 mil budget vetoes, Pure Michigan program among biggest losers
Buffalo News: Keep emotions out of Buffalo’s soccer stadium debates
The Detroit News: Tax Credits Don’t Change Business Realities
Michigan Advance: One data center tax break bill clears committee, others stall
The Hill: States: Stop subsidizing these 3 dumb things
The Center Square: No-fault auto insurance reforms face legal hurdles
Cleveland Plain Dealer: Public subsidies for sports venues like Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse just aren’t worth it
Marc Cox Morning Show: Is the new soccer team an economically sound move for St. Louis?
St. Louis Post-Dispatch: Emotion defeats common sense in St. Louis’s MLS stadium deal
Des Moines Register: Iowans deserve tax credit transparency
Michigan Advance: Rural SW Michigan project scores $30M tax incentive
Globe Gazette: Mason City’s Gatehouse deal: Lucrative, risky, necessary?
Albany Times-Union: NY needs new leadership to lure businesses to the state
Crain’s Chicago Business: Economic development deals risk ruining Chicago
Michigan Advance: State and Detroit officials approve Fiat Chrysler deals
The Center Square: $150,000 in tax incentive for two Loveland businesses criticized
Fortune: Data Sheet—Amazon’s Cloud Service Goes After Oracle
BisNow: Amazon Inks Massive Operations Center Lease At Nashville Yards
The Guardian: Amazon faces new headache as Nashville deal enrages locals left and right
The Tennessean: Nashville didn’t need to make a deal with Amazon
Crain’s Detroit Business: Money for roads hidden by corporate tax breaks
Indianapolis Star: Indy’s proposed soccer stadium deal unfriendly to taxpayers
Detroit News: Amazon retreats from NYC subsidies
The Center Square: Colorado Springs City Council set to approve millions in tax incentives to sporting goods retailer
2018:
Detroit News: Michigan can’t afford bipartisan corporate welfare
The Des Moines Register: It’s time to total the bill for Iowa’s tax credit spending spree
The Oakland Press: Demand honesty on state’s economic development subsidies
Detroit News: Development incentives don’t benefit communities
Billings Gazette: Economic development programs are failures
Blogs, Podcasts & More
2026:
Field of Schemes: Friday roundup: The year that stadium subsidies went completely nuts
2025:
The Overton Window: ‘These programs do not deliver what they say on the label’
Ironside Sports Media: The Tampa Bay Rays owner and executives should be embarrassed at their recent comments
Field of Schemes: Was the Carolina Panthers’ $650m renovation deal really the worst of 2024? An investimagation
2024:
Cato Daily Podcast: The State-Run Corporate Handouts That Help Politicians and Harm Taxpayers
Thumbwind: Michigan Legislature Grants $90M Tax Breaks to Jobless Data Center?
Daily Kos: Say no to Michigan data centers
The Patriot Post: In Brief: Economic-Development Agencies Make Promises They Can’t Keep
Econception Podcast: Time to Ditch Stadium Subsidies?
Tom Tresser “CivicNotes” Substack: Mayors, Please Show Greedy Team Owners the Door
Atlantic Civic Circle: What makes a state a good place to do business? (And what does that mean for workers?)
2023:
No Dowd About It: The Year in Corporate Welfare
L.A. New Liberals Webinar: Holding Economic Development to Account
Daily Signal: 4 Ways Washington’s Spending Spree Caused Inflation With Trillions in Waste, Fraud
Heritage Foundation: The Road to Inflation: How an Unprecedented Federal Spending Spree Created Economic Turmoil
Maine Policy Institute: Gov. Mills’ refurbished corporate welfare program won’t help Maine’s economy
Let People Prosper Podcast: How Corporate Welfare DISRUPTS Economies & PROBLEM With “Sidewalk Socialism”
Mackinac Center for Public Policy: Policy Forum: Can Michigan Buy Its Way to Growth?
Cato Daily Podcast: Big Taxpayer Bucks for Buc‐ee’s
Southwest Public Policy Institute: SPPI-TV Ep.7: Corporate Welfare – Make it Stop!
Kansas Policy Institute: Kansas’s $1 billion Panasonic handout part of $100 billion in subsidies nationwide
State Policy Network: Week in Review, May 12, 2023
Impact (Mackinac Center for Public Policy): Mackinac Center Addresses Corporate Welfare Deal in Big Rapids
Stop the Marshall Megasite: The Center for Economic Accountability criticizes subsidies for Ford’s BlueOval Battery Park
The Overlook Podcast: McCormick Field | Play Ball!
ITR Live Podcast: Sidewalk Socialism
2022:
Cato Daily Podcast: 2022’s Big State Subsidy Binge
National Auto Dealers Association: Georgia’s Rivian Plant Subsidy Recognized as 2022’s “Worst Economic Development Deal of the Year” by the Center for Economic Accountability
Field of Schemes: Billionaires all over get cash for their stadiums and arenas and car plants and movie shoots (I got a rock)
Detroit Regional Chamber: This Week In Government: Senate Moves Child Care Expansion Bills Closer To Governor’s Desk; Bills Extended Tax Abatement For Biz Contested By Both Dems, Reps
Boondoggle Substack: 3 Ways Congress Could End the State Subsidy Wars
Field of Schemes: Plague of minor-league soccer stadium subsidy demands reaches pandemic proportions
Better Cities Project: Sports Stadium Subsidies: Fair or Foul?
International Liberty: Stadium Subsidies, Reverse Redistribution, and Cronyism
Field of Schemes: Possible VA locations for $3B Commanders project revealed, Tulsa mulls USL stadium on race massacre site, and more!
Giving Ventures Podcast: Freer Cities (Blog post here.)
Field of Schemes: VA proposes spending a damn billion dollars on Commanders stadium, all other news pales in comparison
State Policy Network: WEEK IN REVIEW: MAY 13, 2022
Rotary Club of Grosse Pointe: Presenter John C. Mozena
Public Seminar: A Year of Wasted Opportunity
2021:
The Dish (Keith Law): Stick to Baseball
Detroit Regional Chamber: Oct. 1 | This Week in Government: Gov. Signs Budget; Debate Begins Over Good Jobs for Michigan-Style Incentive
Archbridge Podcast: A Deep Dive on State and Local Development with John Mozena
Daily Detroit Podcast: Why incentives don’t work (and what to do instead) ft. John Mozena
John Locke Foundation: Corporate Welfare Blowout: Gov. Cooper Pledged $1.3 Billion to Just 58 Corporations in 2021
The Political Orphanage: Stadium Subsidies Are Unfathomably Stupid
MIRSNews.com: MIRS Monday Podcast Nov.8, 2021
Cato Daily Podcast: The Broad Coalitions That Stop Corporate Welfare
American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) blog: A Great Week at the Great Lakes Tax and Economic Policy Academy
Freedom’s Champion (Atlas Network): Reflections of Two Executives of Nascent Think Tanks
Free the People: Economic Development Subsidies are “Job Creation” for Central Planners
Nobody Expects the Dismal Science: Our Crony Capitalism Fighting Friend – Economic Development Incentives Ft John Mozena
2020:
Better Cities Project: Economic Development During COVID-19
Atlas Network: Building a Think Tank From the Ground Up
State Policy Network: Growing Iowa’s Fields of Opportunity
Cornell University ILR: Economic Development on Common Ground: Two Bipartisan State Policies for Defunding Low Road Infrastructure
Better Cities Project: Getting Back to Work – Economic Development
Center for the Study of Liberty: Ideas at Work with John Mozena: $70 Billion
2019:
American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) blog: Great Success at the Great Lakes Policy Academy
America’s Future Foundation blog: Bad Ideas and Bad Deals in Economic Development Incentives
The Maine Wire (Maine Heritage Policy Center): Portland should put people at the heart of economic development
TEF Iowa blog: Understanding the societal cost of runaway tax credits
Cato Daily Podcast: When Sweetheart Economic Development Deals Fail
Cato Daily Podcast: The Big Numbers Behind Economic Development Freebies
Neoliberal Podcast: Bad Incentives ft. John Mozena (direct link here)
Daily Detroit Podcast: Is Detroit’s Subsidized Comeback Worth It?