$613 Million Panasonic Incentive Clears House of Representatives

One of the largest manufacturing plants in North America could soon make its way to Oklahoma.  

Lawmakers in the House of Representatives have approved a bill offering hundreds of millions of dollars to Japanese-based Panasonic.  

The HB4455, the LEAD Act, offers nearly $700 million to two unnamed companies. While top lawmakers said they legally can't talk about where the money would be going, others said it's no secret.  

“We all know it’s Panasonic, we all know it’s Canoo,” Rep. Tom Gann, R-Pryor, said.  

“This is the worst kept secret in the building,” Rep. Kyle Hilbert, R-Bristow, said.  

To qualify for a piece of the pot, the company would have to spend more than $3.6 billion building the facility and meet annual employment markers, all to get a 3.4% rebate on the total cost of the construction. House leaders said ‘player one’ widely understood to be Panasonic could receive $613 million over five years.  

“I sense there’s a lot of stress anxiety and concern in this room,” Rep. Scott Fetgatter, R-Okmulgee, said. “There should be. There should be stress anxiety and concern because we’re dealing with Oklahoma taxpayer dollars.”  

The plan is different from what Gov. Kevin Stitt asked lawmakers for at a press conference Monday. 

“The bottom-line numbers are the same in the LEAD Act and the proposal Governor Stitt discussed yesterday,” Stitt Communications Chief Charlie Hannema said. “The governor is pleased that the LEAD Act overwhelmingly passed the House today and looks forward to its consideration in the Senate.”  

The bill passed 81-to-17 with bipartisan support and bi-partisan opposition. One of those voting against was Gann, who represents the location of the proposed plant.  

“It’s immoral to give tax dollars away to a corporation that doesn’t need it or for a business model that doesn’t deserve it,” Gann said.  

If it clears the State Senate and is signed into law, the package is poised to compete with a $1.3 billion offer from the State of Kansas.  

“My understanding is that this makes us very competitive, this would put us in a good position to land the deal,” Hilbert said.  

The bill will likely be heard in the Senate on Thursday.