An important federal ruling last week found that "giving a company certain tax breaks to site a plant in one local instead of another is unconstitutional...."
".....the use of the tax code to influence where a company invests is contrary to the Constitution's guarantee of free commerce...." "The Sixth U. S. Circuit Court of Appeals decided against city and state officials, who used a franchise tax credit in the late 1990s to entice DaimlerChrysler to invest $1.2 billion in a Jeep factory in Toledo." Vicky here: This is big, really big news. In Minneapolis, over the past decade the MCDA spent over 1/2 billion dollars interfering with free trade. The City has already lost several lawsuits as a result. The most recent example is the Sears site redevelopment heist. This stinky deal is ripe for a class action lawsuit against the City and I wouldn't mind becoming the lead Plaintiff on behalf of all taxpayers. It's still early in the game, but as I see it, the government will no longer be able to use public money to favor one business over another. After all, it's the government's duty to level the playing field, not to rotate it in self-serving directions. Very, very exciting stuff -- at least for those who still respect the mother of all laws, our Constitution. http://www.startribune.com/stories/535/4973358.html Vicky Heller North Oaks and Cedar-Riverside REMINDERS: 1. Think a member has violated the rules? Email the list manager at [EMAIL PROTECTED] before continuing it on the list. 2. Don't feed the troll! Ignore obvious flame-bait. For state and national discussions see: http://e-democracy.org/discuss.html For external forums, see: http://e-democracy.org/mninteract ________________________________ Minneapolis Issues Forum - A City-focused Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy Post messages to: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe, Un-subscribe, etc. at: http://e-democracy.org/mpls
