Also, we just finished discussing the ridiculous subsidization of a power line to Amazon's data centers.doc_loliday wrote: ↑Fri Aug 31, 2018 9:45 amI'll bite. Grump says the US subsidizes Amazon. I think we could agree the tax payer shouldn't have to pay for their shipping.
http://fortune.com/2017/07/16/amazon-po ... e-subsidy/
Basically this article says the formula for calculating shipping costs is outdated which means Amazon is getting a better rate than they really should. Calling that a subsidy is kind of a stretch in my opinion.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles ... u-might-be
In sum total: https://www.bna.com/amazon-close-breaking-n57982085432/Amazon Isn’t Paying Its Electric Bills. You Might Be
Amazon has also negotiated an unknown rate discount with American Electric Power in Ohio, where it received $77 million in tax incentives for three data centers in 2016. Late last year, Amazon dangled 12 more in exchange for reduced electricity rates, and AEP exempted it from surcharges other Ohioans must pay. “That’s de facto cost-shifting,” says Ned Hill, an economist who teaches economic development policy at Ohio State University. “Other businesses and households in Ohio are now bearing all the costs of those riders.” The other businesses include Facebook Inc., which opened a $759 million data center in Ohio last year. “As a general practice, we do not negotiate exclusive rates,” Facebook spokeswoman Melanie Roe says.
Amazon Close to Breaking Wal-Mart Record for Subsidies
Amazon, the national leader in e-commerce sales, is expected to vault past a record for state and local tax subsidies held for many years by Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the undisputed king of brick-and-mortar retail sales.
An exact calculation of the total level of state and local subsidies for either company would be impossible due to the lack of a central economic development data source and inconsistencies in disclosure protocols among jurisdictions. However, a conservative estimate by the progressive economic policy research and advocacy group Good Jobs First suggests Wal-Mart has captured more than $1.2 billion in tax abatements, credits, exemptions, infrastructure assistance and financing deals during four decades of rapid expansion that has left the company with 4,672 retail locations across the country.
An analysis of similar subsidy data, however, shows Amazon could surpass Wal-Mart’s $1.2 billion record later this year.
At the end of 2016, Good Jobs First and the Institute for Local Self Reliance (ILSR), a progressive policy group focusing on sustainable community development, pegged Amazon’s record for state and local subsidies at just over $1 billion ( for data on Amazon-awarded subsidies since 2015, see chart below). The new year began with Amazon committing to build out its rapid-delivery business model, and states and municipalities lined up to help. In less than three months, Amazon racked up another $92 million in tax credits and exemptions to develop warehouses and fulfillment centers in California, Illinois, Kentucky, Maryland and Michigan.
