MEDC defends SOAR fund use, details site-readiness and compliance as lawmakers press for job and payment data

The House Oversight Subcommittee on Corporate Subsidies and State Investments heard a presentation April 30 from Michigan Economic Development Corporation representatives on the Strategic Outreach and Reserve (SOAR) fund, with lawmakers pressing for more data on job-creation timelines, payments made and public-record disclosures related to mega tax credits.

The SOAR presentation, delivered by Kristen Armstrong and Josh Hunt of the MEDC, described the fund’s two components — a Critical Industry program for closing deals and the Strategic Site Readiness Program (SSRP) for preparing investment-ready sites — and stressed that any SOAR spending requires legislative transfer approval after Michigan Strategic Fund board action. “We’re looking forward to discussing the impact and the value of the SOAR fund over the past several years,” MEDC representative Kristen Armstrong said in her opening remarks.

Committee members asked for additional follow-ups and raised concerns about the pace of job creation, whether clawbacks have been enforced, how return-on-investment is calculated, and whether MEDC will comply with a court order to disclose certain contract terms. MEDC staff agreed to provide requested datasets and clarified how monitoring and reimbursements work.

MEDC said SOAR was created in December 2021 to help Michigan compete for large, transformational projects after the pandemic; its Critical Industry awards are performance- and…