SC

More Problems For Crony Capitalist SC Gun Company

PTR OWES TAXPAYERS BIG BUCKS … || By FITSNEWS || It’s been two years since Connecticut-based gun manufacturer PTR relocated to South Carolina (coaxed by taxpayer-funded “incentives,” of courses).  In fact it was S.C. governor Nikki Haley‘s “personal touch” credited with sealing the deal. We supported PTR’s decision to leave Connecticut … although…

PTR OWES TAXPAYERS BIG BUCKS …

|| By FITSNEWS || It’s been two years since Connecticut-based gun manufacturer PTR relocated to South Carolina (coaxed by taxpayer-funded “incentives,” of courses).  In fact it was S.C. governor Nikki Haley‘s “personal touch” credited with sealing the deal.

We supported PTR’s decision to leave Connecticut … although we opposed (as we consistently have) the use of taxpayer subsidies to lure them here.

Anyway it’s been a rocky ride for PTR.

First there were the company’s unfulfilled jobs promises, and more recently an Horry County, S.C. councilman employed by PTR committed suicide at the company’s Aynor, S.C. facility.

The latest bad news?

According to The (Myrtle Beach, S.C.) Sun News, PTR currently “owes Horry County more than $73,000 in overdue rent.”

“We’ve come to a point in time where we’ve actually put them on notice that we’re looking at exercising our rights under the lease agreement to recover those arrearages,” a county attorney told the paper.

Um …

First of all, government shouldn’t be in the landlord business any more than it should be in the “economic development” business.  Neither is a core function of government.  More to the point, though: What’s wrong with this company?

Isn’t the gun business booming?

Yes. Checks of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)’s background check database hit an all-time high of 1.58 million in May – reflecting strong consumer demand.  In fact annual background checks have nearly tripled over the last decade – from 8.95 million in 2005 to more than 21 million last year.

We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again: Government has no business using tax money to pick winners and losers in the marketplace.

Win or lose … it’s simply not fair to the people forced to front the money.

***

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27 comments

Pauley June 26, 2015 at 1:55 pm

Well the business model will really collapse when the Supreme Court will reduce gun ownership – next 2-3 years – fugwtaboutit

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Squishy123 June 26, 2015 at 2:10 pm

$73,000 you say, with a facility that size that’s probably one month’s rent.

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The Buzzman June 26, 2015 at 2:17 pm

Regardless of how much it is, they need to pay up.

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TroubleBaby June 29, 2015 at 9:02 am

For a facility of that size, it’s probably around three months worth of rent if I had to guess. ($4/sq foot or so I’m guessing if it was an empty facility in desperate need of a tenant- which I’m assuming any gov’t peddled property is- maybe even less if there was taxpayer incentive money tossed in)

Probably not a good sign for them IMO…

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Peanuts June 26, 2015 at 3:19 pm

And they thought the cut in labor costs would be reason enough to move to SC. Oh well…

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Frank Right June 26, 2015 at 3:20 pm

Damn – FITSNews is on a roll this week!

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Frank Right June 26, 2015 at 3:22 pm

Was that Gov. Haley or Congressman Duncan? May be two different companies, but as I recall Duncan was soliciting that company. It is entirely possible, being in the south, that I have my gun companies confused.

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nitrat June 26, 2015 at 4:42 pm

Duncan was recruiting for Horry county? That’s not his district.

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Frank Right June 26, 2015 at 4:46 pm

I need to look it up, he was recruiting for a gun manufacturer to relocate to SC. I’m pretty sure they did, but don’t recall off top of head who it was.

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Frank Right June 26, 2015 at 4:53 pm

” A New York firearms company should move to South Carolina because the Southern state is more sympathetic to gun rights, according to a South Carolina congressman.

Republican Rep. Jeff Duncan urges the parent company of Remington Arms to move its Ilion, N.Y., plant to South Carolina to avoid “enemies” of the Second Amendment.”

“He said he’s encouraging South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, a Republican, to contact gun-manufacturing facilities in other states where gun-control legislation is likely.”

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/01/29/gun-manufacturer-new-york-south-carolina/1875287/

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Frank Right June 26, 2015 at 4:54 pm

No idea if that plays into Horry County and for the record, while I like Duncan as a person, someone of integrity, someone who tries — I hope for smarter.

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Accuracyplease June 27, 2015 at 1:10 pm

Duncan is even more of an idiot than his father was a crook. Was very afraid he would go down with Randy “Duke” Cunningham.

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truthmonger June 28, 2015 at 4:59 pm

Haley. They even gave her a shiny rifle at the opening.

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Slim Shady June 29, 2015 at 1:43 pm

Yep, and now they are asking for it back.

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Jonny Logic June 26, 2015 at 4:17 pm

As seen by the recent Colt bankruptcy filing, gun makers are in trouble. They rely on the NRA and GOP to install fear (after every mass shooting and the ever present, weekly Obama is coming for our guns message), but they cannot sustain the demand in perpetuity.

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nitrat June 26, 2015 at 4:41 pm

Man, I wish I could remember the company I read about a couple of weeks ago…but, some CEO’s seem to be in similar mindset Alan Greenspan had during the housing bubble, that infinite growth due to infinite demand is out there if we only have another trade agreement.
They still think that those billions of people in China, India and Africa earning slave wages – when they have jobs – are going to buy all the products they can produce.
That’s crazy and by shipping all their plants to those places they’ve destroyed the American middle class and the steadily increasing demand they had for 30 years after WWII. And, THAT’S what made them rich and would keep them rich.
Something went really wrong in this country’s business schools at some point – when the theory that short term stockholder returns was all that mattered took over – and they just don’t know what they are doing anymore.

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truthmonger June 27, 2015 at 12:39 am

Dead on.

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Mike at the Beach June 27, 2015 at 10:52 am

Mostly BIG gun makers are in trouble (if at all), only because (unlike 30 years) there’s a ton of competition out there for them now.

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Accuracyplease June 27, 2015 at 1:09 pm

Including 3-D printers.
????

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Mike at the Beach June 27, 2015 at 2:37 pm

True, indeed! Hell, even simple jigs for drill presses are getting pretty dangerous as competition goes.

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Elfego June 27, 2015 at 10:53 am

Your last name does not fit!

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nitrat June 26, 2015 at 4:29 pm

Did this company REALLY do business in CT?
Or, did SC and Horry county just give a lot of stuff to a start up?

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truthmonger June 27, 2015 at 12:37 am

PTRs are good rifles, just overpriced. If the prices came down, sales would go up -considerably. Until that happens, they’re in trouble trying to compete.

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Elfego June 27, 2015 at 10:52 am

“taxpayer-funded “incentives” is an everyday way of life in America.It is done daily in DC and around the country. If you notice what DC does is set the stage for all other counties and cities in this country!

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Accuracyplease June 27, 2015 at 1:07 pm

Perhaps they stashed their money in a out-of-the-country, tax haven, bank account. Good luck collecting!

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SickOfAholes June 30, 2015 at 9:23 am

Oh, but Haley is such a Gun Whore. She’s more than willing to spend Public Money on her private interests.

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