If you look at the empirical findings, the biggest competition is not between states. It's between cities within states that are close to each other. That's where you'll find most of the action going on, and actually, it's worse, because it's likely to have the most negative impact on the public purse where the competition is so local. |
Retail locates not because of incentives. It locates because there are people there to buy stuff. It's the people that matter. |
The retailers who get these economic-development incentives seem to be gaining in ways that they should really not be gaining. There is very little justification for a retailer to get incentives except that cities feel that they are competing with each other. That's the reason why they give it. |