Jacobin: The Art of the Green New Deal
From the story:
When government apparatuses run calls for proposals for state-issued contracts, the rules are typically straightforward: go with the lowest bid and offer the maximum in tax incentives. Given the size of these contracts, as well as the fact that the state is, in theory, acting in the public interest, changing these rules is a unique opportunity to improve working and community conditions on a large scale. Federal contractors alone employ about 22 percent of the American workforce, giving the government great power to enforce labor laws and raise labor standards through procurement policy.
According to Kasia Tarcynska of Good Jobs First, government spending has wide social implications:
Large development projects do not happen in a vacuum. They create opportunity costs and force us to ask questions such as: “What else could state and local governments have done with those dollars?” New developments also bring new residents — and taxpayer costs — to an area. They require more classrooms, teachers, firefighters, public safety officers, garbage haulers, and highway construction.
Read the full story at Jacobin.