After SPIN! Video: Was the CSX Hub tax incentives a good use of public money?
Published September 8, 2016
After SPIN! "Question to Chris Fitzsimon – Recently CSX Corporation announced they were going to be building a rail hub near Rocky Mount. With all the tax incentives being offered it is estimated that public money will subsidize every job to the tune of $700,000. What’s your reaction to this news and was it a good investment of public money?"
September 8, 2016 at 10:37 am
Richard Eason says:
Very disappointing not to heat other opinions from your panel on this subject. Rather one sided don't you think?
September 8, 2016 at 2:34 pm
Norm Kelly says:
Sorry. Not a tough question at all.
$700,000 tax payer dollars per job IS NOT WORTH IT. This is robbery to the highest degree.
If CSX thinks this is a good place to do business, it would do so with significantly less cost to taxpayers. Or no cost at all!
This should be the death knell for tax incentives. If this doesn't push even the most hard-line supporter over the edge, nothing will and no amount would be too much.
How about we try another idea? Republicans in the Legislature have started to do it, and demons are crawling out of their skin with disgust. It's called tax incentives FOR ALL BUSINESSES. Demons refer to it as giving money to 'the wealthy' and taking it from our schools. Not only is it NOT giving money to the wealthy, it's allowing businesses that DON'T PAY TAXES to keep more of what they earn so they can INVEST THEIR OWN MONEY in expansion. But, the money that businesses would invest back into the region would NOT have gone to education anyway; education spending HAS gone up! It was demons who last CUT education spending.
If all businesses were allowed to keep more of their earnings, through tax cuts, the cost of tax increases would not have to be passed on to customers, more jobs would be created at zero cost to tax payers, and MORE money would potentially come into taxing authorities for spending on education and other necessary things. But demons constant, never ending call for tax increases is counter-productive. There is a point of diminishing returns. At the point of diminishing returns, it becomes necessary for government to offer incentives to get businesses to do business in the region. Leaving money in the pockets of ALL businesses is more fair, less costly, and less prone to cronyism. But, then again, we know all pols WANT cronyism. Especially demon pols! Makes them feel powerful! And it tends to line their pockets as well.
Want to get more corruption out of politics? I mean besides putting HilLIARy in jail. Take some money out of politics. The first great start is eliminating 'incentives'. Can you imagine, $700,000 per job!? More than outrageous! Criminal!
