J.C. Bradbury
@jcbradbury.com
Economist, Georgian, Gadfly
Stadium Subsidies, Film Incentives, Local Economic Development, Sports Economics
Tariffs bad. Vaccines good.
Conjecture is not evidence.
jcbradbury.com
Book website: ThisOneWillBeDifferent.com
Stadium Subsidies, Film Incentives, Local Economic Development, Sports Economics
Tariffs bad. Vaccines good.
Conjecture is not evidence.
jcbradbury.com
Book website: ThisOneWillBeDifferent.com
Pinned
J.C. Bradbury
@jcbradbury.com
· Nov 6
Cover just dropped. Coming in 2026 from Oxford University Press.
The Rays "belong in Tampa Bay"... Please, it was the Rays who backed out of a deal to give the team $600 million of taxpayer money for a brand new stadium. Now the owners are demanding double that. "The Rays need more welfare" is the appropriate slogan.
DeSantis, MLB commissioner say Rays ‘belong in Tampa Bay’
The governor and MLB commissioner Rob Manfred spoke at a news conference at Hillsborough College on Tuesday.
www.tampabay.com
February 4, 2026 at 8:26 PM
The Rays "belong in Tampa Bay"... Please, it was the Rays who backed out of a deal to give the team $600 million of taxpayer money for a brand new stadium. Now the owners are demanding double that. "The Rays need more welfare" is the appropriate slogan.
My article (with @bradhumphreys.bsky.social ) "Yes, There is an Economic Consensus That Professional Sports Facilities are Inadvisable Public Investments" is now published in Economic Development Quarterly. journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...
February 4, 2026 at 7:03 PM
My article (with @bradhumphreys.bsky.social ) "Yes, There is an Economic Consensus That Professional Sports Facilities are Inadvisable Public Investments" is now published in Economic Development Quarterly. journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...
I'm going to rip my hair out. For the millionth time: It doesn't matter where the taxes are collected, but where they come from, which is reallocated from existing local tax collections. Folks, we have to elect better people. This is either negligence or incompetence.
February 4, 2026 at 1:37 PM
I'm going to rip my hair out. For the millionth time: It doesn't matter where the taxes are collected, but where they come from, which is reallocated from existing local tax collections. Folks, we have to elect better people. This is either negligence or incompetence.
STOP just saying uninformed things like this. Nashville's last mayor basically ended his political career by backing the unpopular Titans stadium. CLT has committed ~$900M to renovating NFL & NBA venues. Neither city has money or political capital to subsidize an MLB ballpark.
February 3, 2026 at 10:18 PM
STOP just saying uninformed things like this. Nashville's last mayor basically ended his political career by backing the unpopular Titans stadium. CLT has committed ~$900M to renovating NFL & NBA venues. Neither city has money or political capital to subsidize an MLB ballpark.
It's not socialism if Republicans support it.
These rural expanses could be Georgia’s next big development sites
State leaders are pumping a new round of funding into select rural Georgia communities to prepare their development sites for the needs of industry.
buff.ly
February 3, 2026 at 1:50 PM
It's not socialism if Republicans support it.
The @tampabaytimes.bsky.social has done a pretty good job of covering the Rays stadium saga, but this is a terrible headline. What matters for public policy is the public cost ($1.15 billion), the public share is totally irrelevant. It implies that the public ask is low, and it's not.
Rays tell Hillsborough they’ll cover at least 50% of Tampa stadium cost
Rays tell Hillsborough they’ll cover at least 50% of Tampa stadium cost
A county document “describes the key elements and guiding principles which could form a feasible framework” for a stadium at Hillsborough College.
www.tampabay.com
February 3, 2026 at 1:06 PM
The @tampabaytimes.bsky.social has done a pretty good job of covering the Rays stadium saga, but this is a terrible headline. What matters for public policy is the public cost ($1.15 billion), the public share is totally irrelevant. It implies that the public ask is low, and it's not.
Rob Manfred's legacy as commissioner isn't looking so hot. Labor strife seems inevitable. MLB clubs are scrambling for new public stadium deals, while NFL teams have no problem. Now the league has totally flubbed broadcasting, after it basically invented today's streaming model.
February 2, 2026 at 9:33 PM
Rob Manfred's legacy as commissioner isn't looking so hot. Labor strife seems inevitable. MLB clubs are scrambling for new public stadium deals, while NFL teams have no problem. Now the league has totally flubbed broadcasting, after it basically invented today's streaming model.
In other words, the Rays are seeking a $1.15 billion subsidy from taxpayers.
February 2, 2026 at 7:56 PM
In other words, the Rays are seeking a $1.15 billion subsidy from taxpayers.
It's kind of amazing how many people think what economists deride as the broken window fallacy is a core tenet of Econ 101. We're talking something that was debunked 175 years ago.
February 2, 2026 at 7:31 PM
It's kind of amazing how many people think what economists deride as the broken window fallacy is a core tenet of Econ 101. We're talking something that was debunked 175 years ago.
Surprise, a retort that begins with "bro" gets it wrong.
Any spending that might happen in "A. Field." will be transferred from elsewhere, which results in a reallocation of tax revenue.
Ugh, Twitter.
Any spending that might happen in "A. Field." will be transferred from elsewhere, which results in a reallocation of tax revenue.
Ugh, Twitter.
February 2, 2026 at 5:38 PM
Surprise, a retort that begins with "bro" gets it wrong.
Any spending that might happen in "A. Field." will be transferred from elsewhere, which results in a reallocation of tax revenue.
Ugh, Twitter.
Any spending that might happen in "A. Field." will be transferred from elsewhere, which results in a reallocation of tax revenue.
Ugh, Twitter.
We've reached the point in the process when the political players backing the stadium proposal fully realize that they didn't do their due diligence on the plan that sounded so good over cocktails in the owners box. They can't admit they were duped, so it's full steam ahead.
Wyandotte County to hold public hearing on STAR bond financing for proposed Chiefs stadium
Like their counterparts in Olathe, county leaders in Wyandotte County will consider whether to commit future tax revenue for a potential Chiefs stadium on the Kansas side.
www.kmbc.com
February 1, 2026 at 8:04 PM
We've reached the point in the process when the political players backing the stadium proposal fully realize that they didn't do their due diligence on the plan that sounded so good over cocktails in the owners box. They can't admit they were duped, so it's full steam ahead.
Reposted by J.C. Bradbury
Yeah, yeah, I remember that deal. That’s the one where it was a super duper mega TIF worth billions to leonsis and where your consultants so blatantly double counted state and local impacts and assumed $750 a night hotel rooms in the project potter forecasts. www.alxnow.com/2026/01/16/o...
Outgoing Gov. Youngkin says he regrets failed deal for Potomac Yard sports arena | ALXnow
Outgoing Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin doesn't have many regrets as he prepares to leave office. But he named the inability to get an Alexandria arena deal done in 2024 as one lost opportunity. The W...
www.alxnow.com
January 17, 2026 at 3:01 AM
Yeah, yeah, I remember that deal. That’s the one where it was a super duper mega TIF worth billions to leonsis and where your consultants so blatantly double counted state and local impacts and assumed $750 a night hotel rooms in the project potter forecasts. www.alxnow.com/2026/01/16/o...
Reposted by J.C. Bradbury
“Just local sales tax” is false. Olathe levies a ptax millage, and rezoning the parcel away from ag and making it exempt creates a ~$1.7m/yr cost for city residents; $37m in pv over 30 yrs. The county, schools, and state also will face ptax costs. www.kansascity.com/news/local/c...
Olathe reveals site of proposed Chiefs practice facility, prepares for vote
A public hearing about the STAR bond district and potential tax pledge will be held at 7 p.m. next Tuesday.
www.kansascity.com
February 1, 2026 at 2:59 PM
“Just local sales tax” is false. Olathe levies a ptax millage, and rezoning the parcel away from ag and making it exempt creates a ~$1.7m/yr cost for city residents; $37m in pv over 30 yrs. The county, schools, and state also will face ptax costs. www.kansascity.com/news/local/c...
Ah yes, it's about time for the veiled non-specific relocation threat to spike the team ask for a taxpayers subsidized stadium. It would be absolutely stupid for MLS to abandon a market with 3 million people. Tell the owner-operators to pound sand.
Is this the Whitecaps' final MLS season? Sure feels like it.
Axel Schuster wanted to speak honestly to the team's fans about where things are.
buff.ly
February 1, 2026 at 2:45 PM
Ah yes, it's about time for the veiled non-specific relocation threat to spike the team ask for a taxpayers subsidized stadium. It would be absolutely stupid for MLS to abandon a market with 3 million people. Tell the owner-operators to pound sand.
I thought it was odd that Baseball America brought in John Coppolella as some sort of insider contributor, given that he's been out of baseball for ~decade and the minors have been completely overhauled. So I read the two articles he wrote. Now, I'm even more confused.
Today's newsletter is out!
Inside: John Coppolella gets a job, David Brooks gets two jobs, a $25 million penthouse, Great Moments in Freeing Luigi, more protest songs, Ilhan Omar kicking ass, and affordability
www.cupofcoffeenews.com/cup-of-coffe...
Inside: John Coppolella gets a job, David Brooks gets two jobs, a $25 million penthouse, Great Moments in Freeing Luigi, more protest songs, Ilhan Omar kicking ass, and affordability
www.cupofcoffeenews.com/cup-of-coffe...
Cup of Coffee: January 30, 2026
John Coppolella gets a job, David Brooks gets two jobs, a $25 million penthouse, Great Moments in Freeing Luigi, more protest songs, Ilhan Omar kicking ass, and affordability
www.cupofcoffeenews.com
January 30, 2026 at 12:29 PM
I thought it was odd that Baseball America brought in John Coppolella as some sort of insider contributor, given that he's been out of baseball for ~decade and the minors have been completely overhauled. So I read the two articles he wrote. Now, I'm even more confused.
Nobody:
The newest contributor for Baseball America:
Former MLB GM John Coppolella.
Why he's writing for Baseball America, how he got here and the perspective he hopes to bring:
Former MLB GM John Coppolella.
Why he's writing for Baseball America, how he got here and the perspective he hopes to bring:
John Coppolella: Why I'm Writing For Baseball America
Introducing new Baseball America contributor John Coppolella, the former MLB general manager who brings a life's passion for baseball to our coverage.
buff.ly
January 29, 2026 at 6:38 PM
Nobody:
I'm curious if this proposal has been vetted by any economists with a background in public finance. It seems like that would be a good idea.
Burns unveils plan to eliminate property taxes on Georgia homes
The proposal would fundamentally change how local governments fund schools, roads and other local services.
buff.ly
January 29, 2026 at 1:44 AM
I'm curious if this proposal has been vetted by any economists with a background in public finance. It seems like that would be a good idea.
