Time and again, North Carolina officials shield information about
incentive packages from the public by saying the records contain trade
secrets. But when Richard Wagner interviewed a commerce secretary from
another Southeast state, that argument was soundly refuted. Wagner put
the official’s reasoning in a recent commentary about Senate Bill 393,
which would require annual reports on the incentives, but which was
withdrawn by after objections from Commerce officials.
“It’s time for the public, and state legislators, to be brought into
the deal-making process,” Wagner wrote. “As the public records law now
stands, everyone except for a tight inner circle in the Easley
administration is kept in the dark until the last minute. Then
legislators are pressured to approve these deals quickly, mostly on
blind trust.” The piece is getting attention. The Pilot of Southern
Pines recently published it, and it will appear in the Greensboro News
& Record on Sunday and in the member newsletter for the business
group NC100.