Note: many of these publications are available only in Adobe Acrobat PDF format.  

High Road or Low Road? Job Quality in the New Green Economy
by Philip Mattera et al. (February 2009)

Skimming the Sales Tax: How Wal-Mart and Other Big Retailers (Legally) Keep A Cut of the Taxes We Pay on Everyday Purchases
by Philip Mattera with Leigh McIlvaine (November 2008)

In this report Good Jobs First reveals that retailers in 26 states are being allowed to "skim" more than $1 billion a year as compensation for collecting sales taxes on behalf of state and local governments. The biggest impact is felt in the 13 of those states that put no ceiling on the amount of compensation any given retail company can receive, thus giving a windfall to the likes of Wal-Mart.

"TIF, Greenfields and Sprawl"
by Greg LeRoy (February 2008)

This article, published in Planning and Environmental Law, a journal of the American Planning Association, examines the nation's most controversial kind of economic development subsidy: tax increment financing. It includes a segment on the notorious TIF dispute currently taking place in New Mexico, where radical TIF deregulation threatens to undermine funding for state and local public services.

The State of State Disclosure: An Evaluation of Public Information About Economic Development Subsidies, Procurement Contracts and Lobbying Activities
by Philip Mattera, Karla Walter, Julie Farb Blain and Michelle Lee (November 2007)

The Corporate Research Project of Good Jobs First evaluates the quantity and quality of state government Web-based disclosure on economic development subsidies, procurement contracts and state lobbying activities. The study finds signs of improvement but concludes that states have a long way to go to fulfill the potential of the Internet in enhancing the public's right to know.
[Full report] [Press release] [Executive Summary]
[State appendices and other supplementary online material]

Rolling Back Property Tax Payments: How Wal-Mart Short-Changes Schools and other Public Services by Challenging Its Property Tax Assessments
by Philip Mattera, Karla Walter, Julie Farb Blain and Colleen Ruddick (October 2007)

This first-ever investigation of Wal-Mart's local property tax records finds that the retail giant systematically seeks to minimize its payment of taxes that support public schools and other vital local government services. [Full report] [Press release] [Online appendices with lists of stores and distribution centers examined.]

Growing At Whose Expense? How Tax Avoidance by Shopping Mall Developer General Growth Properties Inc. Harms Communities and Burdens Other Taxpayers
by Philip Mattera, Allison Lack and Karla Walter (August 2007)

Good Jobs First has found that General Growth Properties, the country's second largest owner and operator of shopping malls, has drained more than $200 million in revenues from local governments around the country. This is the main finding of a study of economic development subsidies received by GGP as well as the company's frequent challenges to its property tax assessments. More details can be found in our press release or in the full text of the report.

Insider Baseball: How Current and Former Public Officials Pitched a Community Shutout for the New York Yankees
by Bettina Damiani, Eileen Markey and Dan Steinberg (July 20, 2007)

A deftly assembled lineup of former elected and appointed officials were employed by the Yankees organization to help push through a new baseball stadium even though the project won't benefit taxpayers or community members, claims Insider Baseball: How Current and Former Public Officials Pitched a Community Shutout for the New York Yankees, a new report by Good Jobs New York. The report -- available at www.goodjobsny.org -- reveals cost increases of nearly $100 million for a total taxpayer hit exceeding half a billion dollars.

Pay, or We (Might) Go: How Citigroup Plays the State and Cities
by Dan Steinberg and Sarah Stecker (June 2007)

The world's largest financial services firm rarely makes a move without getting taxpayers to help foot the bill, a new report suggests. Citigroup uses threats of moving facilities and jobs elsewhere to repeatedly play state against state and locality against locality and attract millions of dollars in subsidies. Over the past 18 years this practice has won Citigroup over $226 million from New York and New Jersey governments, sometimes for moving jobs from one state to the other.

Sprawling by the Lake: How IDA-Granted Property Tax Exemptions Undermine Older Parts of the Buffalo/Niagara Metro Area
by Allison Lack (May 2007)

Buffalo - Industrial Development Agencies (IDAs) in the Buffalo/Niagara metro area are subsidizing job creation and investment, but not in areas that most need them. In Erie County, wealthy suburbs  especially those with their own IDAs  contain disproportionate shares of IDA-granted property tax exemptions, fueling regional sprawl. State law that regulates IDAs could be amended to ensure that IDA tax breaks dont undermine regional growth plans and support jobs and investment where they are most needed.

The Ideal Deal: How Local Governments Can Get More for Their Economic Development Dollar 
by Rachel Weber and David Santacroce (March 2007)

Chicago and Washington -- Local governments can write more effective contracts to improve the odds that companies receiving economic development incentives keep their promises to create good jobs and other community benefits - or pay taxpayers back.
[ Press Release ] [ Report ]

Gold Collar: How State Job Subsidies in the Chicago Region Favor Affluent Suburbs
by Jeff McCourt and Greg LeRoy (January 2007)

Chicago -- Job subsidies granted by several Illinois state agencies have severely shortchanged Chicago and many parts of Cook County. Instead of helping to revitalize areas in the region hardest-hit by plant closings and job flight, the state's development deals have favored affluent, outlying areas with low unemployment and the strongest tax base. The resulting spatial mismatch between new job creation at the fringe and economic need at the core means many transit-dependent workers cannot benefit from regional growth.
[ Press Release ] [ Report ]

The Thin Cities: How Subsidized Job Piracy Deepens Inequality in the Twin Cities Metro Area
by Greg LeRoy and Karla Water (December 2006)

Economic development incentives that were originally intended to help revitalize older areas are instead being used by outlying suburbs to pirate jobs and tax revenues from older cities in the Twin Cities metro area. Local officials need a cooperative structure to curtail zero-sum job piracy and focus instead on jointly promoting the region. And the state should use incentive deals as leverage to make more jobs transit-accessible and alleviate traffic congestion.
[ Press Release ] [ Report ]

The Geography of Incentives: Economic Development and Land Use in Michigan
by Greg LeRoy, Allison Lack and Karla Walter (December 2006)

The unfair geographic distribution of economic development subsidies in Michigan favors well-off and thinly populated areas, delivering few benefits to the state as a whole and harming the state's economy. The state should get all the options on the table and begin coordinating its economic development programs with land use planning to make more efficient use of infrastructure, reduce tax base stress, and revitalize existing communities.
[ Press release ] [ Report ]

GO Zone Bonds as an Opportunity to Promote Social Justice in Katrina Reconstruction
by Phil Mattera (April 2006)

Good Jobs First, working with Interfaith Worker Justice and the Gulf Coast Commission on Reconstruction Equity, has issued a report on the Gulf Opportunity Zone bonds. This $14 billion program, created by Congress in December, is the one portion of the Hurricane Katrina aid package that gives the affected states--Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama--control over which companies will receive economic incentives for rebuilding. Our report provides a list of policy options that would allow the states to allocate the bonds in ways that promote efficiency, equity and accountability.
[ Press release ] [ Report ]

The Corporate Research Project of Good Jobs First also supplied Interfaith Worker Justice with profiles of 12 companies that received large contracts for hurricane cleanup and reconstruction along the Gulf Coast.

Making The Connection: Transit-Oriented Development and Jobs
by Sarah Grady (March 2006)

Transit-oriented development (TOD) is growing in popularity, due in part to its environmental benefits and innovative design. This report emphasizes another benefit, looking at the ways TOD can serve the needs of working families - particularly those with low and moderate income - by providing affordable housing and/or better access to jobs. Good Jobs First examines 25 TOD projects around the country and finds that projects with community benefits agreements, projects initiated by community development corporations (CDCs), and projects with exceptional private developers who intentionally sought to link people to job opportunities were more likely to address the needs of working families than most TOD projects.

Loot, Loot, Loot for the Home Team: How the Proposal to Subsidize a New Yankee Stadium  Would Leave Residents and Taxpayers Behind
by Bettina Damiani and Dan Steinberg (February 2006)

This report by Good Jobs New York reveals that taxpayers will pay a far higher price for a new Yankee Stadium than public officials and team executives have let on.  Direct and indirect subsidies could exceed $480 million and a city-sponsored analysis suggests the new stadium would not generate enough revenue to cover its cost to taxpayers. The report also argues that subsidizing this stadium is a costly and inefficient strategy for creating jobs. Finally, the South Bronx community that would be most impacted by the project has been excluded from the planning process.

Subsidizing Low-Wage Jobs:  An Analysis of the First Economic Development Deals Disclosed Under Illinois' New Accountability Law
by Jeff McCourt (February 2006)

Good Jobs First has just completed the first analysis of economic development deals disclosed under the new accountability law in Illinois. We found that many of the subsidies are going to companies that create jobs with pay levels below that needed for a family of four to  pay basic expenses. A full assessment of the quality  of the jobs is not possible, since the law does not require reporting on healthcare coverage.

Breaking the Codes: How State and Local Governments are Reforming Building Codes to Encourage Rehabilitation of Existing Structures
by Philip Mattera (January 2006)

Over the last decade, a quiet revolution has been taking place in the way that state and local governments across the country regulate commercial and residential construction. A new flexibility in the application of building codes is making possible the rehabilitation of structures that would otherwise have remained neglected or abandoned. The new wave of "rehab codes" is playing a significant role in the redevelopment of core urban areas--a process that is a vital counterbalance to unchecked suburban sprawl.

Community Benefits Agreements: Making Development Projects Accountable
by Julian Gross, Legal Director of the Partnership for Working Families, Greg LeRoy of Good Jobs First, and Madeline Janis-Aparicio of Los Angeles Alliance for a New Economy (May 2005)

Good Jobs First and the Partnership for Working Families produced this updated version of their handbook on Community Benefits Agreements. These agreements include benefits such as living wages, local hiring, affordable housing, environmental improvements and funding for other community needs such as health clinics and youth centers. The report also includes a section on monitoring and enforcement of such agreements, as well as excerpts from key agreements.

They're in the Money; We're in the Dark: A Review of the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation's Use of 9/11 Funds
by Stephanie Greenwood and Bettina Damiani (August 2004)

Federal monies for the post-9/11 reconstruction of Lower Manhattan are skewed towards big business and high-income neighborhoods, our investigation finds. Community priorities such as affordable housing, job creation, and local transportation are being ignored. Probing the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation (LMDC) -- the entity formed to distribute Federal cash aid -- we found an agency that lacks transparency and has given numerous grants to companies with ties to LMDC board members.

They're in the Money; We're in the Dark is the most recent in Good Jobs New York's "Reconstruction Watch" series that evaluates the allocation of Federal economic development resources in the aftermath of the attacks on the World Trade Center. Previous reports and updates on allocations are available at www.goodjobsny.org

Your Tax Dollars at Work...Offshore: How Foreign Outsourcing Firms are Capturing State Government Contracts
by Philip Mattera (July 2004)

This report by the Corporate Research Project of Good Jobs First spotlights the growing degree to which state governments are awarding contracts to offshore outsourcing firms. It was produced for the Washington Alliance of Technology Workers (WashTech), a local union of the Communications Workers of America that supports workers in the information technology sector. The report found that 18 offshore outsourcing firms--including several billion-dollar companies from India--are aggressively seeking state government contract work, primarily in information technology, in at least 30 states. The 18 firms have already captured at least $75 million in offshore state contracts and are seeking more, in part by hiring former government officials and by making state electoral campaign contributions. The study also looks at the large number of state food-stamp call centers that are operated offshore. 

Shopping for Subsidies: How Wal-Mart Uses Taxpayer Money to Finance Its Never-Ending Growth
by Philip Mattera and Anna Purinton (May 2004)

In this extensively researched study, we show that the giant retailer has received more than $1 billion in economic development subsidies from state and local governments across the country. Taxpayers have helped finance not only Wal-Mart stores, but also the company's huge network of distribution centers, more than 90 percent of which have gotten subsidies. The report also includes policy proposals, including a prohibition on subsidies to big-box retailers except in distressed areas that are underserved by retail outlets (and in those cases the recipient of the subsidy should be required to pay a living wage).

Note: Updated information on this subject can be found on our Wal-Mart Subsidy Watch website.

Know When to Fold 'Em: Time to Walk Away from NYC's "Corporate Retention" Game
by Stephanie Greenwood and Bettina Damiani (February 2004)

Corporate retention deals negotiated by New York City in the 1990s failed to create jobs, despite their multimillion-dollar price tags, our investigation finds. Analyzing contracts never disclosed before between large firms and NYC, the report highlights thirteen outrageous deals. Some actually allowed companies to lay off as many as 20 percent of their employees with no penalty. Finally, the report highlights problems with the public reporting on these deals, citing differences between internal city documents and a mandated annual report. Following the release of this report, the NYC Industrial Development Agency announced several improvements to its decision-making process and to the corporate retention program as a whole. For further details please visitn www.goodjobsny.org.                             

The Jobs Are Back in Town: Urban Smart Growth and Construction Employment
by Phil Mattera and Greg LeRoy (2003)

This report, for the first time we believe, begins to provide evidence that the job-related arguments against smart growth are dead wrong. Rather than diminishing the number of construction jobs, it turns out that smart growth is in many ways better than sprawl in creating employment for workers who build residential and commercial structures as well as transportation infrastructure.

The Policy Shift to Good Jobs: Cities, States and Counties Attaching Job Quality Standards to Development Subsidies
by Anna Purinton (2003)

A national survey finds that the number of economic development subsidies with job quality standards is continuing to rise sharply, and that standards are becoming an everyday tool for effectively targeting development subsidies to businesses that create high-quality jobs.

Get Something Back! How Civic Engagement is Raising Economic Development Expectations in Minnesota
by Anne Nolan and Greg LeRoy (2003)

A review of events since Minnesota enacted its first-in-the-nation economic development accountability law in 1995 finds that the law is a major factor contributing to an increase in civic engagement in economic development issues.

Missing the Bus: How States Fail to Connect Economic Development with Public Transit
by Mafruza Khan (2003)

A 50-state survey of economic development subsidy programs--such as loans, grants, and tax incentives -- reveals that not one single state effectively coordinates its economic development spending with public transportation planning.

Labor Leaders as Smart Growth Advocates: How Unions See Suburban Sprawl and Work for Smart Growth Solutions
by Greg LeRoy (2003)

This survey of union federation leaders -- 39 central labor council leaders and 11 state labor federation leaders -- reveals that all of them see serious problems in their regions being caused by suburban sprawl.

Straying from Good Intentions: How States are Weakening Enterprise Zone and Tax Increment Financing Programs 
by Alyssa Talanker and Kate Davis (2003)

This report examines legislative changes to two geographically targeted economic development programs: tax increment financing (TIF) and enterprise zones. It asks the question: Have laws governing these programs been weakened to permit the use of these programs in non-blighted or affluent areas? In virtually every state that has weakened its TIF or enterprise zone program, the answer is "Yes."

Protecting Public Education from Tax Giveaways to Corporations 
by Kate Davis (2003)

This report, released in conjunction with the National Education Association, examines the impact of property tax based subsidies on school revenues and the role that school boards have in the economic development process.

A Better Deal for Illinois: Improving Economic Development Policy 
by Jeff McCourt and Greg LeRoy (2003)

This report includes a 25-year historical narrative on the Illinois Department of Commerce and Community Affairs, an analysis of the EDGE Tax Credit and Single Sales Factor subsidies, and five case studies on company-specific deals.

Economic Development in Washington DC 
by Alyssa Talanker and Kate Davis (2002)

An analysis of 13 major economic development deals subsidized by the District of Columbia reveals a lack of safeguards to ensure the projects pay off for taxpayers, workers and communities.

In Search of the Great Pumpkin: Economic Development Accountability in North Dakota 
by Anne Nolan and Greg LeRoy(2002)

This broad review reveals that North Dakotans are being asked to take it on faith that economic development subsidies are producing results.

Subsidizing the Low Road: Economic Development in Baltimore
by Kate Davis and Chauna Brocht (2002)

An analysis of Baltimore's economic development efforts reveals a history of high costs, low benefits, and a lack of safeguards to ensure that taxpayer investments really pay off in family-wage jobs.

No More Secret Candy Store:  A Grassroots Guide to Investigating Development Subsidies
by Good Jobs First (2002)

A comprehensive guide to researching state and local subsidies, economic development agencies, and companies.

Jail Breaks: Economic Development Subsidies Given to Private Prisons
by Phil Mattera and Mafruza Khan (2001)

The first study to catalog state and local economic development subsidies given to private prisons.

Talking to Union Leaders About Smart Growth
by Greg LeRoy (2001)

A hands-on tool to help smart growth activists reach out to union leaders based on working-families' self-interest.

Minding the Candy Store: State Audits of Economic Development
by Sara Hinkley and Fiona Hsu (2000)

A comprehensive summary and database of 122 state performance audits of economic development programs of the last decade.

Smart Growth and Workforce Development
by Greg LeRoy and Sara Hinkley (2000)

How suburban sprawl reduces opportunity for low-skill workers and contributes to the geographic concentration of poverty, and how smart growth policies could reverse those trends.

Another Way Sprawl Happens: Economic Development Subsidies in a Twin Cities Suburb
by Greg LeRoy and Sara Hinkley (2000)

A case study of a fringe-suburban industrial park that used tax increment financing to lure 29 companies, relocating 1,600 jobs mostly away from the urban core. Includes impact analyses based on race, poverty, welfare and transit access.

Economic Development in Minnesota: High Subsidies, Low Wages, Absent Standards
by Greg LeRoy and Tyson Slocum (1999)

An analysis of 525 economic development deals made possible by Minnesota's first-in-the-nation subsidy disclosure law, which found almost half the subsidized companies paying 20% or more below-market wages.

No More Candy Store: States and Cities Making Job Subsidies Accountable
by Greg LeRoy (1994)

No More Candy Store is the original compilation of grassroots remedies for corporate welfare abuse -- remedies like money-back guarantee "clawbacks," requirements that subsidized companies pay fair wages and benefits, rules for full disclosure, environmental protection and "anti-piracy" safeguards against "paying Peter to rob Paul" with taxpayers money. Verbatim passages from all of the nation's best state and local laws and contracts, ready-made for activists, legislators and anyone seeking to make economic development subsidies accountable.