In a recent development in New Carlisle, the St. Joseph County Common Council has given the green light to a major investment project involving General Motors (GM) and Samsung SDI. The $3.5 billion battery plant initiative is sold as a way to bolster economic growth in the region, but gives enticing incentives such as 100% tax abatement for real estate taxes over 10 years and for personal property taxes over 15 years to GM and Samsung SDI.
The project was approved by the St. Joseph County Common Council on May 23, 2023, which flipped from 6-3 Democrat control to 5-4 Republican control following the 2022 elections.
This begs the question of whether Republicans in St. Joseph County are truly acting as an alternative to the Democrats in St. Joseph County. Granting large tax abatements to out of state and, in this case, foreign investors is a longstanding practice of St. Joseph County Democrats. One example was the College Football Hall of Fame in South Bend.
Notably, General Motors is headquartered at the renowned Renaissance Center in downtown Detroit, Michigan, while Samsung SDI's global base is situated in Gyeonggi-do, South Korea. The genesis of this grand venture can be traced back to August 2022 when Ultium Cells LLC, a collaboration between GM and LG Energy Solution, applied for a tax abatement for a $2 billion facility.
The recently opened Ultium Cells LLC plant in Lordstown, Ohio, USA is touted as further underscoring the companies' commitment to cutting-edge technology and sustainable solutions. LG Energy Solution's headquarters are located in Seoul, South Korea.
This project's ability to sustain itself to the end of the abatement periods, in NIT’s opinion, is, however, as dubious as the College Football Hall of Fame's turned out to be. We have seen, this winter across the U.S., the inability of electric car batteries as well the charging infrastructure that comes with them to be effective in annual cold weather conditions. The stories of travelers using electric vehicles to travel in winter conditions being stranded have been sadly amusing.
In addition, South Bend's High Skill Immigration Fund (HSIF) has been sold as a strategic approach to bridging labor market gaps by supporting businesses seeking high-skilled immigrant talent for critical roles. By providing financial aid to companies sponsoring H-1B visas, the HSIF aims to mitigate risks associated with visa procurement and drive economic growth within the region.
The HSIF was launched on January 23, 2023 by the City of South Bend and celebrated by Democrat Mayor James Mueller, along with the all Democrat South Bend Common Council as a major step forward economically. This project is run in coordination with the Department of Community Investment, whose Executive Director is well known Democrat Caleb Bauer.
A question that needs to be asked of local leaders in St. Joseph County, including South Bend specifically, is whether GM/Samsung SDI will be using the HSIF to fill, “high skill”, jobs at their facility. NIT will be working to investigate this question as well.
GM/Samsung SDI state that jobs at the ev battery plant will pay between $16.00 and $32.00 an hour. Local Republicans have been patting themselves on the back since approving this project. As if the public doesn't notice the GOP building the infrastructure for the Green New Deal that Democrats have been forcing down the throats of Americans for years. The devil, however, as they say is in the details and the details look a lot less kosher, or forthright, than what has been stated publicly.
One example is the payscale at the facility. Articles in mainstream media and statements from public officials have pushed the selling point that these are $24.00 an hour jobs. In reality, production line jobs will be be in the $16.00 an hour range with quality control, engineering and management jobs being in the $32.00 an hour range. Which yields an average of $24.00 an hour (32÷48+16). $16.00 an hour is not a living wage in the current economy, with inflation run amuck. NIT will be continuing to publish articles on this and other stories in Northern Indiana, with a focus on South Bend and St. Joseph Co..