Incentives game pits neighboring states against each other, a metro region against itself

Despite widespread agreement – even among their recipients – that incentives are generally bad policy, no one wants to be the first to give them up. This article looks at Kansas City, Mo. and Kan., and the cross-border raids that are pitting the states against each other to entice companies to move a few miles and resettle on the other side. Of the 53 companies that received state tax incentives to move into Kansas since the 2009 fiscal year, 45 have been from Missouri. Some in the region have pushed the idea of a "border zone" in which the states would be allowed to offer incentives only for new jobs, rather than those that are simply relocated from next door. More here.