United States of Subsidies series, you should. It’s a remarkable study in how taxpayer money is spent, often wasted, all in the name of “creating jobs.”
As part of the series, the Times identified 48 companies that have received more than $100,000,000 each in state grants since 2007.
Seven are firms identified by the Times are Michigan-based and a total of 17 of the 48 received subsidy from Michigan taxpayers. All told, from 2007 onward, these 48 companies received over $5,000,000,000 from Michigan taxpayers.
Michigan Companies On The NYT Top 48 List
GM: $1,770,000,000 from 16 states, including over a billion from Michigan.
Ford: $1,580,000,000 from 8 states, including over a billion from Michigan.
Chrysler: $1,400,000,000 from 3 states, including over a billion from Michigan.
Dow Chemical: $217,000,000 from 7 states, including $145,000,000 from Michigan.
Dow Kokam: $171,000,000, all from Michigan.
Dow Corning: $139,000,000 from 2 states, including $13,800,000 from Michigan.
Michigan Motion Picture Studios (formerly Motown Motion Picture LLC): $115,000,000, all from Michigan.
Non-Michigan Companies Receiving Michigan Subsidy On The NYT List
GE: $78,200,000 from Michigan.
Weyerhaeuser: unknown subsidy in the form of 3 grants from Michigan.
Electrolux: unknown subsidy in the form of 5 grants from Michigan.
Michelin: unknown subsidy in the form of a grant from Michigan.
Johnson Controls: $149,000,000 from Michigan.
A123 Systems: $139,000,000 from Michigan.
LG Chem: $125,000,000 from Michigan.
Fortu PowerCell: $113,000,000 from Michigan.
Panasonic: $120,000 from Michigan.
Daimler: $84,300,000 from Michigan.
In other words, there are 48 companies (to borrow a phrase from Mitt Romney) who are dependent upon government, who believe that they are victims, who believe the government has a responsibility to care for them, who believe that they are entitled to special tax abatements, to subsidies, to publicly-funded employee training, to you-name-it -- that that's an entitlement.
