On Foxconn, be active investors

As Foxconn breaks ground, I want to talk about investment and partnerships. When Gov. Scott Walker signed off on the Foxconn deal, he created a partnership. He made a $4.5 billion investment on behalf of the people of Racine and the people of Wisconsin as a whole, the largest taxpayer subsidy of a foreign corporation by a state in our country’s history.

We have a choice about how to approach this investment. Wisconsin can be a silent investor, letting Foxconn call the shots and hoping for the best. Or we can be active investors, working to make this deal benefit our community.

In Wisconsin, we have great models for these partnerships. SC Johnson has been investing not only in their business, but in the greater Racine community since 1886. Epic Systems worked with local municipalities to develop convenient, cost-effective public transportation options. In building their new arena, the Milwaukee Bucks committed to, and achieved, substantial local and diverse hiring goals. These businesses changed our economic landscape through community partnerships.

To make this partnership work, we need Foxconn to make commitments to us, the people, and not just Walker.

First, Foxconn can make a concrete commitment to hiring people locally and hiring people of color. Foxconn has already taken a positive first step, announcing that it will hire 3,000 veterans. Similarly, Foxconn can work with our community to promote a diverse, local workforce.

Second, Foxconn can share its plan for protecting our workforce in the face of automation. Wisconsin deserves to know Foxconn will protect our investment, our people, and our jobs.

Third, Foxconn can commit to partnering with local municipalities to develop a world-class regional public transit system. We need an efficient, effective way to not only get to work, but to get people where they need to go in our community.

We have the right and the responsibility to demand the best possible outcome for Wisconsin. I know this deal was not what many of us hoped for, but Foxconn is here. I would rather be an active investor than let this opportunity slip through our fingers.

Rep. Greta Neubauer

Racine