News of the Obvious: Business Extortion Edition

Dayton Daily News:

In some high-profile 2011 cases, the state subsidized new corporate headquarters for corporations that threatened to leave the state but ultimately used the money to move only a few miles, to wealthier communities.
For example:
• After securing $93.5 million in state incentives over 15 years, American Greetings Corp. last year announced it will leave its longtime hometown of Brooklyn and move a dozen miles away to the more upscale Cleveland suburb of Westlake. The new headquarters with its 1,750 workers will be in a chic lifestyle center part-owned by the family that controls American Greetings. The cost for each of those jobs: $53,429.
• Diebold Inc. received state and local tax credits sufficient to pay for a new $100 million headquarters in the Summit County town of Green. Diebold officials promised to keep 1,500 employees in Ohio for 18 years. But in a move allowable under incentive agreements, the company announced in April it will move 200 Ohio jobs to India.
• Columbus officials were surprised when Bob Evans Farms snubbed their incentives package and announced plans to leave the city’s south side for affluent New Albany. A spokesman for Mayor Michael Coleman said company officials told Coleman they planned to stay in Ohio, but used a relocation threat to squeeze $17.4 million in incentives from the state.
• The Wendy’s hamburger chain returned to its traditional hometown of Dublin after a brief corporate marriage to Arby’s in Atlanta. The state ponied up $8.9 million and Dublin gave $8 million for 223 jobs, bringing the total public expenditure to $75,785 per job. Meanwhile, Wendy’s racked up millions in severance and relocation payments to executives, including an $11.5 million golden parachute to former Chief Executive Roland Smith, who declined to move to Ohio.
• Kasich granted $78 million in incentives to keep Marathon Petroleum Corp. in Findlay. He also granted Marathon an exemption from the state’s commercial activities tax, against the recommendation of his tax commissioner.

The Diebold one seems the most egregious to me, although Bob Evans is really close.  The family owning Diebold is so tied into the Republican party that it seems really fishy that they threatened to move and got a huge tax package right after Kasich won election.  I don't want to go all conspiracy theory on you, but that seems like a joint back scratching deal.  Diebold gets a stack of money and Kasich can pretend he saves jobs.  Whatever the case, taxpayers lose while shareholders win.  Corporate welfare at its finest.