More Wealth Being Redistributed in the Wrong Direction

Another highly illuminating article over at Reason about tax increment financing (TIF) districts. Yet another fine example of how the politically well-connected line their pockets at the expense of those who are less connected. More supporting data for the First Law of Politics. I don’t have anything against the big box retailers as a general principle. (Note my qualified defense of Wal-Mart in an earlier post.) I think Wal-Mart/Sam’s Club, Target, and Costco are perfectly entitled to try and get some of our money by earning our business as shoppers, but these TIF’s (and other forms of tax bribery/extortion) let them pick our pockets as taxpayers, and that ain't right!