SUBSIDY POLICY CAMPAIGNS

SUBSIDY POLICY CAMPAIGNS

Legislation that attaches community standards and benefits to the subsidies that state and local governments grant to developers and corporations.

NYC Industrial Development Agency Reform Campaign

TAKE ACTION! Sign a postcard for IDA reform

Industrial Development Agencies (IDAs) are the main source of economic development subsidies at the city, town, village and county level throughout New York, granting hundreds of millions of dollars in tax breaks to spur job creation and retention each year. Even though IDAs are all set up and run locally, they are authorized and regulated by State Law. This year, the state legislature will review this law. NYC JwJ began working with like-minded groups around the state to push for a key set of reforms to the IDA law, including:

• Making sure that the jobs created pay a decent wage;
• Making sure that a significant percentage of the jobs created go to area residents
• Making sure that companies and IDAs are reporting adequately on the terms of the deals, and whether companies are living up to their end of the bargain
• Setting up a procedure for recovery of the tax breaks if companies do not live up to their bargain
• Implementing a Community Impact Report procedure that allows communities to play a role in the process of developing projects
• Adding environmental protections to the IDA law

Eugene-Springfield Solidarity Network/JwJ Community Standards Campaign:

The Community Standards Campaign seeks to apply local standards for wages, benefits and other business practices when private companies receive public subsidies from the county or other government bodies. In addition our standards would require accountability and transparency on the part of companies receiving subsidies. In early 2005, ESSN scored an initial victory when the Eugene City Council passed a resolution embracing ESSN's ideas for community standards in an application to the state for an enterprise zone designation.

View ESSN/JwJ's Big Box Report