From Sunday's article on the MDC's 10 year history:
The deal with Apache Corp., which was approved in 2010, is an example of great expansion in Midland's chief industry, Rendall said.Apache may have come to Midland without the incentive, but it has been a great partner, Rendall said. The company already has nearly four times the jobs it agreed to in its $250,000 contract and continues to work with the MDC to recruit new employees to Midland.
Rendall said MDC will continue looking to diversify but that contracts like Apache's will have a place in Midland because the energy sector -- whether oil, wind or solar -- always will be a staple.
"You have to recognize that is our bread and butter industry," he said.
It should go without saying that oil & gas being our bread and butter industry here in Midland was pretty well recognized ten years and $47 million ago.
Ten years ago the voters were told by those campaigning for the 4A Sales Tax that only by diversifying our local economy away from the oil and gas business could we secure Midland's future. Actually, it went further than that. We were told that Midland was essentially doomed unless we passed the 4A tax. Now we award "incentives" to giant firms that not only are in the oil and gas industry (the same oil and gas industry that we were told we needed to diversify away from) but are companies that were already here in Midland.
Is the money being used as we were told it would be ten years ago? You be the judge. If you are interested, have a look at the series of posts from Jessica's Well in March/April of 2010 that went through a series of Letters to the Editor written by proponents of the sales tax in the run-up to the election. They are posted below.