The Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal Editorial, 1/28/9
The state of Mississippi has upheld its end of the bargain to keep Cooper Tire an economic linchpin in Tupelo and Northeast Mississippi.
The 1,200 employees who work there and the hundreds more that rely on the company indirectly for their livelihoods got good news just before Christmas when Cooper announced it would keep the Tupelo plant open. The quality and productivity of the local plant’s workers was the primary reason for that success in the face of the company’s analysis of its four U.S. facilities, but also essential was an incentives package developed by the Community Development Foundation, local governments and the Mississippi Development Authority.
But the Legislature had to approve the state incentives, and it has done so with dispatch. On Tuesday, the Cooper legislation completed the last leg of the legislative journey when it passed the House of Representatives after earlier clearing the Senate. It must still return to the Senate for agreement on a technical amendment, but that should be a simple formality.
The Legislature has finished the effort started by local and state economic development officials and community leaders. The result will be an economic bright spot for Northeast Mississippi and the state in otherwise trying times.
