Tag: Economic Development

Bill to Extend Bath Iron Works Tax Deal Cuts Minimum Investment Requirement and Expands Definition of Qualified Expenses

When enacted into law in 1997, the original 20-year, $60-million tax deal from the state of Maine to General Dynamics subsidiary Bath Iron Works was intended to subsidize the cost of a shipyard “modernization” the company said would position it to be a viable and competitive business for decades.

It required the company invest at least $200-million in its facility and allowed for a $3-million annual tax credit to defray the costs incurred from planning, design, engineering, construction, demolition, remodeling, repair, and other expenditures related to the infrastructure project.

But newly proposed legislation to extend the credit, made available online for the first time this week, requires the company to invest only half the amount mandated in the original act and expands the definition of a “qualified investment,” potentially allowing the company to claim reimbursement on employee training. Continue reading Bill to Extend Bath Iron Works Tax Deal Cuts Minimum Investment Requirement and Expands Definition of Qualified Expenses

In Maine, a History of Bold Claims and Vague Commitments From General Dynamics

When he gave his keynote address before the Chamber of Commerce of the Greater Portland Region in September 1997, then General Dynamics CEO Nicholas D. Chabraja had reason to celebrate.

It’d been two years since his company, annually among the nation’s largest defense contractors, had acquired local shipyard Bath Iron Works, and not long since it secured a $194-million megadeal with the state of Maine and the city of Bath to subsidize a massive infrastructure “modernization” at its newly acquired facility.

Chabraja decided to thank the more than 700 people gathered at the Holiday Inn By The Bay, as the Portland Press Herald reported, for the apparent role their community played in assuring the viability of a major Maine employer for decades to come.

“A great old shipyard that got its start in the 19th century will have all the support necessary to be a formidable shipbuilder well into the 21st century,” Chabraja, who stepped down as CEO in 2009, said, according to the paper. “In support of BIW, you’ve put your money on the people of Maine—and on a shipyard that will now be around for another hundred years.”

But, little more than 20 years on, officials at General Dynamics are no longer so sanguine. They’re back at the negotiating table, saying the company needs an extension of a key $60-million tax credit component of the 1997 deal in order to remain competitive with a rival shipbuilder in Mississippi.

Continue reading In Maine, a History of Bold Claims and Vague Commitments From General Dynamics

Extending Bath Iron Works Tax Deal Would Ignore State Consultant’s Review

As some Maine lawmakers and defense contractor General Dynamics see it, the state needs to continue its Shipbuilding Facility Credit, due to expire this year, if it wants to maintain the competitiveness of subsidiary Bath Iron Works and a crucial part of the state’s economy.

But, if Maine were to keep the multi million-dollar-a-year program going without first making substantial revisions to what some call an obvious sweetheart deal, it would be going against the advice of the very consulting firm it hired to evaluate its tax incentive programs. Continue reading Extending Bath Iron Works Tax Deal Would Ignore State Consultant’s Review

Rhode Island is Still Not Complying With Its Own Law on Evaluating Tax Incentives

[NOTE: This story is part of an ongoing reporting project being developed for Rhode Island Public Radio.]

Rhode Island appeared to be headed in the right direction in 2013 when it signed into law the Economic Development Tax Incentives Evaluation Act, officially requiring regular analysis of its many “business development” tax breaks to corporations.

But, more than four years on from its enactment, the Evaluation Act has yet to amount to much more than a symbolic victory for the advocates for government and corporate accountability who helped push it through.

Continue reading Rhode Island is Still Not Complying With Its Own Law on Evaluating Tax Incentives