Subcommittee hears testimony blaming Goshen deal for taxpayer losses, questions MEDC oversight and $23.6M SSRP payment

Members of the Michigan House Oversight Subcommittee on Corporate Subsidies and State Investments continued their review of the failed Goshen electric‑vehicle battery project and state subsidy practices, focusing on recovery of funds and the adequacy of MEDC oversight.

"This was no mere business transaction gone awry," testified Ambassador Joseph Sella, who described the Goshen agreement as "one of the worst examples of state driven economic development in the history of the state of Michigan" and alleged ties between Goshen and the Chinese Communist Party that he said were not sufficiently vetted.

The committee heard that the Michigan Strategic Fund (MSF) has declared Goshen in default and that the central fiscal question is recovery of state funds. Chair Cara summarized the appropriations tied to the project, saying there was "$125,000,000 in CIP or critical infrastructure project funding that never got appropriated to Goshen" and that of a "$50,000,000 in SSRP or Strategic Site Readiness Program funding, $23,600,000 was appropriated to Goshen." The chair characterized the $23.6 million as the…