Don Moss

When a manufacturer announces a $1 billion campus and 1,200 new jobs, the response is immediate: economic development teams mobilize, governors hold press conferences, and consultants engage early in the process. Yet a far more common scenario receives far less attention — a successful manufacturer expanding from one facility to two, adding perhaps 150 jobs and entering a new market for the first time.

Navigating the New Standard: Incentives Are No Longer Automatic For years, economic incentives for data centers and large-scale industrial projects followed a fairly predictable path. That’s no longer the case. The landscape has shifted, with states introducing stricter eligibility criteria, performance requirements, and compliance obligations that can materially impact deal viability. Incentives are no longer a late-stage benefit. They are an early-stage risk factor.

Just as supply chains began to normalize from the unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic, shockwaves were sent through the logistics industry with the March 26 tragedy involving the collapse of Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge. Companies faced significant challenges as critical transportation routes were severed, leading to disruption at one of the busiest ports in the United States.