No tax giveaways for General Dynamics
To Peaceworks
http://bangordailynews.com/2018/02/17/opinion/letters/monday-feb-19-2018-st-clair-for-congress-another-school-shooting-hayes-for-governor/
No tax giveaways for General Dynamics
The same moral bankruptcy being played out in our nation’s capital seems, unfortunately, to be echoed in our state.
With the release of the proposed budget, we have in print how the Trump administration proposes to pay for the $1.5 trillion in “tax relief” for the rich who control our nation’s legislative agenda — by devastating cuts to critical programs and services for the rest of us to the tune of $1.7 trillion. Of course, the Pentagon is spared.
Here in Maine, we’re having a $60 million tax break for General Dynamics, parent company of Bath Iron Works, foisted upon us. LD 1781, sponsored by Rep. Jennifer DeChant of Bath, would extend the corporate welfare that General Dynamics has extracted from Maine. This at a time when General Dynamics is spending $9.6 billion to buy CSRA Inc., a provider of IT services focused on national security. Among other things, this deal is expected to add to General Dyanmics’ earnings per share, which should help a lot when it comes to stock buybacks.
Imagine for a moment the real-world needs that could be met in Maine with $60 million. There are so many it’s hard to know where to start: education, health care, the opioid crisis, food insecurity and crumbling infrastructure, to name a few. One thing is for sure: providing corporate welfare to General Dynamics is not one of them. It is outrageous and irresponsible to consider doing so.
Connie JenkinsOrono
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