Since we use the words “level playing field” so often when we talk about the competition we face with other states and countries for new jobs and industries, let’s take the clichй one step further to explain North Carolina’s economic recruiting team’s won-loss record.
For much of 2015, it has felt like South Carolina and other states were winning championships while we were scraping for nickels and dimes to buy uniforms.
The biggest prize was a Volvo plant that announced in May it would build in – you guessed it – South Carolina, creating 4,000 well-paying jobs in the process.
There was a time 30 years ago when many businesses and industries would measure the economic climate and amenities of North and South Carolina, shoulder to shoulder, and opt for the Tar Heel state on a regular basis. But South Carolina has since loaded up its team with millions of dollars in economic incentives, and the game has swung decidedly in its favor.
Today, finally, we have a renewed commitment to the state’s Job Development Investment Grant fund – nine months after the legislature went to work in the 2015 session. The new bill commits $20 million a year in incentives money for new businesses and industries. That’s short of the $30 million sought by Gov. Pat McCrory, but a modest upgrade from the $15 million the state committed last year.
So, we’re back in the game at last, right?
Except for the fact that the previously mentioned Volvo plant by itself won $87 million worth of incentives from South Carolina.
There are plenty of well-meaning conservatives inside and outside the legislature who argue that incentives are a lousy way to do business. They favor prospective companies over longstanding neighbors and aren’t that big of a factor when it comes to location decisions anyway.
So if that’s true, how does South Carolina keep landing these giant automakers?
