Good Jobs First’s latest tally of economic development subsidies given to Amazon.com finds state and local governments have given the retail behemoth more than $3.7 billion. How much more is becoming increasingly hard to tell.

South Carolina is a state that’s given large subsidies to big companies – Boeing, Michelin, Volvo, Continental Tire, Google to name a few – and it’s also been one of the worst in the country when it comes to revealing the full costs of those deals.

The recent economic downturn caused by the COVID-19 pandemic has forced many companies to reduce staff or close operations. The Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act requires companies to give 60 day advance notice before a mass layoff or a business closure occurs. Here are the links to online WARN Act pages.

Like everything else, economic development is adapting to a new reality. Some states and localities are making special efforts to help small businesses to stay afloat, yet at the same time some of the worst giveaways to large companies are continuing as if the global public health emergency and the national financial crisis were not happening. 

Corporate lobbyists have long blown a fog of fear, disinformation and confusion about public disclosure of corporate income tax credits. It’s time to clear the air.