Assembly Panel OKs $3 Billion For Foxconn On Party Line Vote

Republicans were hoping to get near unanimous support for their three-billion dollar incentive package for Foxconn — but it won’t happen. The Assembly jobs committee voted 8-5 Monday, with all Democrats voting no, on tax breaks and relaxed environmental laws to encourage the Taiwanese tech giant to locate its first large U-S plant in Racine or Kenosha counties. Milwaukee Democrat Jason Fields said the package has “too many loopholes and uncertainties” and Senate Minority Leader Jennifer Schilling says the aid comes out to one-point-five billion dollars for each job. But Stratford Republican Bob Kulp called Foxconn “an investment that makes sense,” and the state could not afford to “look the other way and let this go by.” Foxconn has promised to put up to ten-billion dollars for its new L-C-D screen plant, vowing to create 13-thousand jobs. The full Assembly is scheduled to vote Thursday on the package — and a Democrat in the area of the plant, Kenosha’s Tod Ohnstad, says he’s still open to voting yes even though he voted no in the committee on Monday.