While Governor Walker was trying to convince Bass Pro Shops that it’s honorable to pave a wetland in Green Bay and build on it, jobs slipped just over the border to Illinois.
Or rather, an announcement was made this week about jobs Illinois will gain after 15 months of planning between the City of Roscoe, Illinois and the American Aluminum Extrusion company of Beloit, WI. (They will retain their existing plant in Beloit) The added site will be a $7.5 million dollar investment for the company and is expected to add 130 jobs to Roscoe, Illinois which is between Beloit and Rockford (MAP). The company extrudes and fabricates aluminum and serves the Midwest.
American Aluminum did scout in both southern Wisconsin and northern Illinois for a site with a large footprint and an existing structure. They found their site PLUS a $748,000 TIF funded district in Roscoe. The TIF that sweetened their deal was made possible by the Illinois Industrial Jobs Recovery Law (IJRL). The Illinois IJRL “is intended to use incremental tax revenue to incentivize development in municipalities with high unemployment rates, vacant or underutilized industrial facilities or environmentally contaminated sites” (more HERE.) The IJRL is in effect through January 1, 2012.
Gov. Walker has crowed about how cheap Wisconsin’s taxes are compared to Illinois’ after recent tax hikes there. Governor Quinn did his own tax fact sheet released on January 18th which tries to defend Illinois’ tax changes. It makes it clear that — things really aren’t clear. There are differences in how each state calculates corporate taxes, income tax, plus there are varying taxes by city and county, and then there’s property tax.
In the case of American Aluminum, clearly Illinois’ tax environment did not deter.
In the end, I’m confused.
Didn’t they see Governor Walker’s “Escape to Wisconsin” bumper sticker? Doesn’t everybody know our message is simple, “Wisconsin is Open for Business”?
To get more on the company’s owners, products and Roscoe, see “130 New Jobs Likely at Roscoe Site” – BDN Connection
To read an Illinois blogger’s snarky “so there” see, “Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker Kisses Good-Bye to Business Investment in Illinois” – The Illinois Observer
blue cheddar 
Probably because they raised their taxes to still lower than ours.
Or, government doesn’t create jobs, government creates debt.
I could go on and on.
Open for biznass.
With those two at the border, I would turn and run also. Wonder how the right Wing rag bdn will spin this to blame the dens and call this a Republican. Success