‘If Clayton County doesn’t want Delta, we’ll take it,’ says state lawmaker
Last week, after a heated debate and a 113-61 vote, the House passed a two-year sales tax break for Delta Air Lines on its jet fuel purchases.
Among the loudest opponents were Democratic lawmakers from Clayton County, home to Delta headquarters, which stands to lose $26 million a year from the tax break:
Rep. Darryl Jordan, D-Riverdale, was quoted as saying that the company did not approach anyone in the Clayton delegation about the exemption, and that the school system is trying to fill a $43 million deficit. (Of these two reasons, the snub is often the more important one in a status-conscious Capitol. No doubt House Republican leaders also failed to consult with Clayton Democrats.)
On Monday night, House Majority Leader Larry O’Neal, R-Bonaire, in an interview with Nwandi Lawson, offered to resolve Clayton’s problem:
Said O’Neal:
”If Clayton County is the least bit unhappy with contributing their SPLOST penny to keeping Delta Airlines headquartered here, my county we’ll take them and pay [Clayton] twice what they’re losing for the next 10 years. And we’ll take Delta into our county.”
But O’Neal lives in Houston County. And unless he’s ready to evict Robins Air Force Base to give Delta the proper runway space, we don’t see this happening.
- By Jim Galloway, Political Insider
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80 comments Add your comment
ProgressivePeach
March 22nd, 2011
1:13 pm
Hint for Larry: Companies don’t want to locate in communities where the schools and quality of life are substandard. Driving metro Atlanta down to Houston County’s levels isn’t a vision for the future.
mc
March 22nd, 2011
1:20 pm
I still wnat a free bag as a Georga Taxpayer! We bailed them out in bankruptcy…”b/c they they are too big too fail”…While most of Delta’s growth will be overseas…Asia/India and the likes, probably departing from Seatle, LA and SF! Bring on SW: ASAP, can’t wait!
J
March 22nd, 2011
1:21 pm
Dunno Peach, can anything be really substandard to Clayton??
Andre
March 22nd, 2011
1:22 pm
So basically they voted to take their SPLOST tax money without even letting them know and then he comes back with that smart remark. Dirty, just dirty.
gsueagle
March 22nd, 2011
1:24 pm
special deals, they are all over the place in the gold dome
Lee
March 22nd, 2011
1:31 pm
Hint for ProgressivePeach: If you look at the test scores from the metro Atlanta Schools and the Middle Georgia Area Schools, I bet the Middle Georgia Area Schools are better. As far as substandard communities are concerned, what is the crime rate in metro Atlanta compared to the Middle Georgia Area? I submit that Houston County and the Middle Georgia Area “levels” as you call it are an improvement to metro Atlanta.
The Ghost of Lester Maddox
March 22nd, 2011
1:34 pm
That loud noise we hear ain’t thunder, it’s the corks blowing off the “bumbly” at the plush offices of the Delta lobbyists.
Another day, another corporate tax break, courtesy of the rest of us taxpayers.
Dick
March 22nd, 2011
1:38 pm
How is Boortz’s Fair Tax idea ever going to get going if the powerful keep demanding exemptions to a consumer sales tax? First it was Gulfstream, now Delta. End users of all types need to pay their fair share of sales tax.
Centrist
March 22nd, 2011
1:41 pm
The Delta execs should now get ANOTHER bonus after the ones they got from stealing already earned pensions via bankruptcy.
Roach
March 22nd, 2011
1:42 pm
If the state wants to give Delta a break, then the state, not Clayton County, should pay for it.
I have a friend, and I want to help him out. Here, give me your wallet so I can give him something.
And they say Democrats are bad about redistributing wealth.
Roberto
March 22nd, 2011
1:48 pm
@ Progressive Peach.
You must not be from ’round these parts. Clayton County USED to be a fine place to raise a family.
Jerry
March 22nd, 2011
1:58 pm
The GOP have been giving sweetheart deals to the corporatocracy all around the country. When will middle class America learn to vote for it’s own best interest.
Tom
March 22nd, 2011
2:15 pm
If the Federal Government stopped spending our tax money in Warner Robins and middle georgia on salaries and retirements and other things, the place would dry up and blow away. Isn’t Larry O’neal the guy who introduced the special state tax exemption bill for Governor Sonny several years ago? This fellow really forgives taxes all over the place for a select few.
TrishaDishaWarEagle
March 22nd, 2011
2:50 pm
@ProgPeach..
“Driving metro Atlanta down to Houston County’s levels isn’t a vision for the future.”
Maybe you missed where Clayton county(the main county the airport has been in)..not Houston county..lost their accreditation
Maybe you also missed where APS(that other county the airport is in)..not Houston county..Is in the process of losing their’s without major overhaul from the state.
Standing by for SACS is racist retort in 5. 4. 3. 2….
Sissy Saxby
March 22nd, 2011
2:51 pm
Bonaire: Cradle of Brain Surgeons
tyrone from east point
March 22nd, 2011
2:53 pm
Clayton County is truly the bottom of the barrel.
MDX
March 22nd, 2011
2:56 pm
Why would Delta even want to keep their headquarters in Clayton County, other than proximity to the airport. I’ll bet in their heart of hearts they’d loved to relocate someplace else.
Last Man Standing
March 22nd, 2011
2:59 pm
ProgressivePeach:
I haven’t a clue where you’ve been for the last two decades. I wouldn’t even live in Clayton County, much less a child to that excuse for a school system. Houston County has an excellent school system.
BTW, Bonaire is a minuscule part of Houston County and middle Georgians were never proud of Sonny.
DannyX
March 22nd, 2011
3:06 pm
Well lets do it. Make the move Delta.
We’ll need one of them special Bonaire land deals. You folks can find Delta a nice 20 acre plot of land for the Delta headquarters, then charge Delta 3 times more than the land is worth, just like you did with the Oakey Woods land deal. I’m sure Delta would just love paying three times more than the property is worth.
Maybe Sonny has some land he’d sell. If he does it will come with a brand new 4 lane highway. Perfect.
dan beard
March 22nd, 2011
3:13 pm
Ol’ Loop Hole Larry O’Neal is a real trip, ain’t he?
Jon
March 22nd, 2011
3:17 pm
I would love to be a fly on the wall on Virginia Avenue as O’Neal attempts to pitch Richard Anderson on Houston County.
zoe
March 22nd, 2011
3:21 pm
The majority of the airport is in Clayton County even though the city of Atlanta runs it. The state forgave monies owed by Delta to Clayton County a few years ago too. If I remember correctly, Delta owed the school system over $50 million and the state forgave it when Delta declared bankruptcy. This is an ongoing issue. Clayton County is one of the smallest counties in land area, monies to fund the school system come primarily from property taxes and taxes at the airport. The state is basically stealing money from Clayton County to make themselves look good. The people that decided this don’t care about Clayton County and since they aren’t responsible to the Clayton voters, I am sure they don’t care.
Last Man Standing
March 22nd, 2011
3:23 pm
“You must not be from ’round these parts. Clayton County USED to be a fine place to raise a family.”
Just as DeKalb County was a fine place to raise a family in the 60’s and 70’s.
Just as Gwinnett County was a fine place to raise a family in the 80’s and 80’s.
Does anyone see a pattern emerging here?
jr
March 22nd, 2011
3:36 pm
Peach, you’re right…every county should strive for the standard of excellence set by the Clayton County school board.
Zoe, all things considered, CCPS doesn’t need any more tax money…why throw good money after bad? Learn to responsibly manage what you’ve got, and then milk Delta for tens of millions of dollars.
TrishaDishaWarEagle
March 22nd, 2011
3:42 pm
Last Man Standing,
Even my little niece who screams PATTERN POWER while watching team umi zoomi, could see the pattern. Yet the left wants you to fee racist for pointing the pattern out..even the pattern itself is racist to these idiots, and the common denominators. To hell with the left..forever and always.
Last Man Standing
March 22nd, 2011
3:58 pm
TrishaDishaWarEagle”
You did it! My motto from now on until my death: “To hell with the left..forever and always.”
Thanks. I needed that!
JustTheFacts
March 22nd, 2011
4:08 pm
Everyone should pay their fair share, whether it is Clayton or any other county. This is robbery.
Tom
March 22nd, 2011
4:11 pm
To say Clayton Co has become a quagmire of corruption and incompetence is an insult to quagmires everywhere.
cs
March 22nd, 2011
4:11 pm
another gop goon being a smartarse about corporate welfare.
td
March 22nd, 2011
4:30 pm
Will you libs never learn that corporations DO NOT PAY TAXES. Any taxes paid by a corporation are just built into the cost of the goods or services provided by said corporation. You will pay these hidden taxes and because the corporation has to raise the prices. The price increase for the taxes will force the corporation to cut other cost (labor, products) to be able to price their goods or services to sell in the market place to make their profit margin. To break it down for you libs: When corporate taxes are high then they will outsource jobs and pay the cost for shipping to still be able to compete and make their profits and bonuses.
Mass Dawg
March 22nd, 2011
4:30 pm
When Southwest Airlines comes to Atlanta, you will see plenty more tax breaks for Delta. as their business model and revenues will evaporate as SWA drives fares down. It’s funny how the CEO’s and Board of Directors of these Fortune 500 companies continue to vote themselves big raises as they pander to the government for tax breaks. I liken this to the baby boomer executives of the 90’s, who thought they were such good managers as they closed factories and moved production off shore.
Finally, a love to hear howGeorgians brag about how they are anti big governement. Yet, they pander to feds for money for the Savannah harbor, military bases, school aid, the CDC, and the various other government handouts. Talk about Charlatans.
Einsteindawg
March 22nd, 2011
4:36 pm
This public school funding is a joke. Between the Fed’s and State’s mandates, that do absolutely nothing for our kid’s education, every district will have a deficit. And, the property taxpayers are getting the shaft. When will the inmates stop running the aslylum?
findog
March 22nd, 2011
4:53 pm
Hey Rep O’Neal
Why don’t you give Delta your boondoggle go fish money?
Here’s a thought: if the state passes a special tax break for an individual, company, or corporation then either the elected legislative members serving that community, and the community’s elected leaders, have to sign off; or the state has to replace those lost funds from the general fund.
Eventually the idiots from Houston County will quit screwing metro Atlanta
Maybe the Tea Party crowd will notice how these special deals end up costing the regular guy living in places like Clayton County HIGHER TAXES!
Last Man Standing
March 22nd, 2011
4:53 pm
td:
You’re wasting your time. The libs can’t grasp that concept. All they know to do is to keep beating the goose that lays the golden egg. This time, I think things went too far. The goose has migrated and may well never return.
cs
March 22nd, 2011
4:54 pm
td
March 22nd, 2011
4:30 pm
Will you libs never learn that corporations DO NOT PAY TAXES. Any taxes paid by a corporation are just built into the cost of the goods or services provided by said corporation
i aint a liberal. i also aint gullible neither. you would have people believe that coporations or any business
factors up all its expenses like taxes and then says we gonna add 5% now for our profit and set prices accordingly……only a frickin idiot believes that.
Big Jim
March 22nd, 2011
4:55 pm
Bring those jobs to SC.
cs
March 22nd, 2011
5:06 pm
Big Jim
you can have them if the state has to kiss their arses for them to stay. i cant imagine delta leaving and that traffic and headache leaving with it being anything but a blessing.
you can have the railroads too who dont want to pay fuel taxes either. they deadbeat local governments to death out of property taxes anyway.
td
March 22nd, 2011
5:07 pm
cs
March 22nd, 2011
4:54 pm
td
March 22nd, 2011
4:30 pm
Will you libs never learn that corporations DO NOT PAY TAXES. Any taxes paid by a corporation are just built into the cost of the goods or services provided by said corporation
i aint a liberal. i also aint gullible neither. you would have people believe that coporations or any business
factors up all its expenses like taxes and then says we gonna add 5% now for our profit and set prices accordingly……only a frickin idiot believes that.
Since I am a “frickin idiot” then please explain how a corporation accounts for all the expenses to make a product or service and then turns around and makes a profit? If they are not paying the bills and making money then they go out of business or their stock holders replace the CEO and BOD’s.
findog
March 22nd, 2011
5:19 pm
td,
You are only half right, corporations don’t pay taxes because legislative leaders give them breaks that average small business or individual could never get
Let’s do away with all corporate taxes, they just have to pay to use public functions paid for by taxes: roads, courts, intellectual property protection, police, fire; add a percentage of the armed forces based on their percentage of the nation’s GPD
Let’s see a show of hands how many think a corporation would prefer to pay for the services they receive instead of pittance they pay now?
findog
March 22nd, 2011
5:22 pm
LMS,
Why should I have to defer your true cost of flying?
You, not the corporation, are getting the service
The only way for us to recoup our investment in the FAA and US Military is to tax you, via Delta, for that which you use
Michael
March 22nd, 2011
5:33 pm
Actually, I do figure out my pricing structure based on the taxes and credit card fees I have to pay. Only a “fricking idiot” businessman wouldn’t.
double
March 22nd, 2011
5:37 pm
Is posting to yourself akin to talking to yourself.Hugo Chavez got you libs pegged along with the Bush clan.
Last Man Standing
March 22nd, 2011
5:38 pm
findog:
This is an issue of state taxation. The U.S. military and F.A.A. will receive their portion of the federal taxes paid by Delta. You are correct in that the user of the airline pays the federal tax.
Last Man Standing
March 22nd, 2011
5:41 pm
cs:
“only a frickin idiot believes that.”
You have any other brilliant thoughts you’d like to add?
cs
March 22nd, 2011
5:42 pm
well gee, energy companies etc getting all kinda tax breaks, credits, and aint just squeaking by but making record profits. must not be taxed enough or they raping consumers royally…..or both. both is my opinion.
concerned_taxpayer
March 22nd, 2011
5:50 pm
Where is southwest when you need them. Delta is getting too much tax money.
Last Man Standing
March 22nd, 2011
5:56 pm
findog:
You and I are on the same page – and even the same verse. The point is that no corporation or company actually “pays” taxes. They merely project their tax costs, add it to the price of goods and services and pass it along to the end consumer – you and I. In cases where their pricing is not competitive, they must then find a way to reduce the costs associated with manufacturing or delivery of services. This has resulted in “out-sourcing” to other countries which equates to a loss of jobs here. We can beat China hands-down on quality, but we can’t compete in terms of labor costs. NAFTA and the “globalist view” have harmed America greatly. Placing restrictions on imports from China is something, in my view, that can’t be done. They might decide to call in their I.O.U.’s.
As of 5:00 PM, the national debt was $14.25 Trillion and the federal deficit was $1.34 Trillion. That equates to $126,315.00 per taxpayer.
Easy E
March 22nd, 2011
6:58 pm
td and Last Man Standing,
Show me an instance where a corporation actually lowered their cost of goods/services/products because they recieved a tax break..show me!
I am neither Democrat/Liberal/Republican/Cons but it is very hard to understand your logic of lower taxes=benefits to a company=benefits to society..
Here is the only thing lower taxes does..allows the organization to hoard up more cash/pay out fatter bonuses/payout fatter dividends..*hint* Look at the number of companies on the fortune 500 list who have declared historical profits..
Not saying that lower taxes does not supr hiring et al..but to the extent to which it is peddled is downright ficticious and down right fantasy!
Here is what im trying to understand:
If companies a-la Delta & co pay little to no taxes (which is what is occuring now through tax breaks and all types of accounting mechanisms that enables them pay no taxes), who then pays for the TAXES that need to fund roads, schools, emergency servicies et al??? Surely not the Feds via printing more money??
The answer is YOU and I!!!!!!!!!!!!Get it??
td
March 22nd, 2011
7:34 pm
cs
March 22nd, 2011
5:42 pm
well gee, energy companies etc getting all kinda tax breaks, credits, and aint just squeaking by but making record profits. must not be taxed enough or they raping consumers royally…..or both. both is my opinion
First, all those “tax breaks” result in us paying $3:45 per gallon for gas instead of $5:00 per gallon like in Europe.
Second: Look it up if you do not believe me. Oil companies profit margin is only 3 to 5%. The rest of the cost is what they are being charged + expenses. When it cost $100 billion to produce a product and you get 5% profit then you are going to make $5 billion. BTW: 3 to 5% is a very low profit margin. Most corporations and businesses are between 10 and 25% profit margin.
td
March 22nd, 2011
7:56 pm
Easy E
March 22nd, 2011
6:58 pm
You are looking at it the wrong way. Corporations are going to pay out large bonuses and show profits due to their profits margins. (I do believe the game is rigged in the favor of the CEO’s and their pay packages because they all pack their boards with other CEO’s. This should be changed so that all of a BOD’s should be stock holders with a different range of stocks). Also, most everyone that works has a 401K or retirement plan, so the more these corporations pay out the bigger our accounts grow for retirement. If they were not paying out dividends or stock prises increasing then we would not have enough money to retire.
To answer your question directly: Gas prices are lower in the US then in any other part of the world because the taxes are lower here. Another example for you is airline prices have come down dramatically in the past 10 years due to less taxes and regulations.
We the people pay all taxes and this taxing corporations is just a shell game by the government to make us less knowing of how much we actually pay.