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Resident calls county incentives a 'huge ripoff,' cites $89 million estimate
Summary
A public commenter who identified himself as Joe Kent urged simplicity in incentive policy and cited a figure of roughly $89 million in total estimated incentives countywide, drawing applause and agreement among committee members who sought verification and official data sources.
Joe Kent (speaker 4) gave public comment early in the meeting, criticizing corporate incentives and calling several county practices a "huge ripoff." He said his organization (he identified as Taxpayer Justice Institute) has data on pilots and told the committee: "Total incentives estimated incentives $89,000,000 countywide, city and county. County 53,000,000 that's more that's in addition to pilots and $35,000,000 municipal."
Kent urged the committee not to get mired in compliance minutiae and instead use clear top levels for abatements and job thresholds; his remarks set the tone for later committee discussion about verifying whether companies honored commitments tied to incentives. Committee members thanked him and said their next steps would include reconciling his figures with trustee and assessor records.
