Wisconsin: Walker rolls out new scam

[Scuba]

http://www.biztimes.com/blogs/milwaukee-biz-blog/2011/05/31/jobs-now-would-be-slush-fund-for-special-interests


<snip>

The Jobs Now Fund proposal is the largest special interest Wisconsin tax cut in history masquerading as an economic development initiative. It is a $200 million tax cut at a time when the Wisconsin budget requires cuts in many important programs. It worsens the structural deficit that the governor and legislature have been seeking to eliminate.

The Jobs Now Fund is a cute name for a CAPCO fund, most frequently described by independent national experts as a “scam.” CAPCO’s are not cost effective for job creation or for leveraging venture capital dollars. A CAPCO was tried and failed in Wisconsin in 1998 and similar proposals have been rejected in neighboring states. The proposal discriminates in favor of large corporate investors at the expense of entrepreneurs and angel investors. The legislation also disadvantages the largest jobs sector in the Wisconsin insurance industry, while favoring a handful of life insurers and out-of state insurance companies.

CAPCO’s were tried and failed in Wisconsin.

In 1998 the Wisconsin legislature adopted a $50 million CAPCO, one of the first in the country. It was intended to stimulate venture capital and job growth. Although there were a few individual investments which were successful, which the proponents talk about repeatedly, the overall program was a failure. A simple review of Wisconsin’s ranking on venture capital shows that the $50 million 1998 CAPCO tax cut was wasted. There was no long term change in the national rankings following the CAPCO tax cut. The Wisconsin Legislative Audit Bureau reviewed and criticized the program. The extension of the CAPCO program in 2004 was blocked by Governor Doyle and a bi-partisan group of legislators.

In 2010, the Minnesota legislature conducted a comprehensive study, “Tax Incentives and Venture Capital.” The study concluded, “The Wisconsin CAPCO credit had little or no effect, likely displacing venture capital financing that would otherwise have occurred.” Even the CAPCO industry’s own self-promoting study found that CAPCO’s were not cost effective for job creation — costing $40,000 in lost taxes for each job created after ten years. That study looked at data on only two of the three Wisconsin’s CAPCO’s. The third failed Wisconsin CAPCO manager refused to provide data for the study.

<end snip>


C'mon July 12. Can't get here soon enough.


(edited to include "Wisconsin" in subject.)

[mailman82]

1. In Ohio Too!

Sounds like the same thing Ka$i$h did here! They are all following the same agenda!

[Scuba]

2. Can you say "ALEC"?

[lib2DaBone]

3. Republicans are BORG... they take their marching orders from the same think tanks...

I heard on CBS radio News today that the American Enterprise Institute and the American Heritage Foundation (Koch Bros) were cranking out legislation as fast as possible, in order to change voting laws, funnel State's budgets to cronies and strip health care to all but the wealthy.

These boiler plate fascist laws are then sent out to all Repuke Govs across the country, who work quickly to get them implemented.

Scott Walker, pRick Scott in FLorida, Paul Ryan, etc., and all other Repukes sound alike because they are all signing from the same hymnal.

---------------------

The Heritage Foundation is a conservative American think tank based in Washington, D.C.

The foundation took a leading role in the conservative movement during the presidency of Ronald Reagan, whose policies drew significantly from Heritage's policy study Mandate for Leadership.<1> Heritage has since continued to have a significant influence in U.S. public policy making, and is considered to be one of the most influential conservative research organizations in the United States.<2>

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Heritage_Foundation