Wal-Mart’s growth funded by local subsidies
Wal-Mart goes shopping for Subsidies (.pdf file)
What is not widely known is that this wealthy company’s aggressive U.S. expansion has frequently been financed in part by taxpayers through economic development subsidies. This report, the first national study of the subject, documents more than $1 billion in such subsidies from state and local governments to Wal-Mart; the actual total is certainly far higher, but the records are scattered in thousands of places and many subsidies are undisclosed.
The overall document is sixty-five pages, but the executive summary gets right to the point. I wish corporate welfare were more of an issue in this campaign.
(via the routinely excellent Oligopoly Watch)
