Two Democratic lawmakers in New York have introduced a bill that could possibly allow the state to claw back aid given to Elon Musk’s Tesla as part of the Buffalo Billion project.
New York spent $959 million to build and equip a plant that Tesla, which makes electric vehicles, leases for $1 a year. Tesla operates a solar panel and auto component factory at the site, according to The New York Times.
The new bill would require an audit to "identify waste, fraud and abuse committed by private parties to the contract," a statement from the lawmakers said, according to the Times. It would determine if Tesla was meeting job creation targets, making promised investments and honoring other parts of the deal.
If Tesla was found to be out of compliance, the state could claw back benefits, impose penalties or terminate contracts, the Times said.
State Sen. Brad Hoylman-Sigal and Assemblyman Micah Lasher introduced the proposal.
Musk, Tesla’s CEO, has become a target for Democrats and other critics of President Donald Trump in the early days of Trump’s second term. Musk supported Trump during his campaign with heavy spending and has been one of those leading the administration’s efforts to slash the size of the federal government.
Many of the cuts have proven controversial and led to lawsuits.
Musk is the world’s richest man.
Critics have been pushing back in a variety of ways, including efforts like the bill aimed at the Buffalo Billion project.
“It is the height of hypocrisy that Elon Musk, the man who is dismantling federal agencies and doing enormous damage on the basis of wildly unsubstantiated claims of waste, fraud and abuse, is the beneficiary of one of the biggest, shadiest subsidy deals of all time,” the two lawmakers, Hoylman-Sigal and Lasher said in a statement, according to the Times.
Assemblymember Pat Burke, a Buffalo Democrat, is arguing the state should hit the brakes on signing a new agreement with Tesla to continue operating the factory, according to Gothamist. Gov. Kathy Hochul’s administration has been renegotiating Tesla’s deal with New York since last year.
“Is this who you really want to be in bed with?” Burke told Gothamist. “We already lost a ton of money. Are we going to lose more money? We don’t have the answer for that, but I don’t know if the answer is to get into another bad deal.”
A different effort in New York is seeking to get the state pension fund to sell its shares of Tesla stock.
Lawmakers are also pushing for changes to the special arrangement that allows Tesla to operate sales locations in New York.
Former Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s leadership of the Buffalo Billion project is likely to be an issue as Cuomo attempts a political comeback in the New York City mayor’s race, according to Politico.
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