The Texas Rangers are the latest sports team trying to swindle their local fans. If local voters approve $1 billion dollar new baseball stadium, taxpayers would be on the hook for at least $500 million. No matter that the current stadium underwent major renovations just six years ago.
“Taxpayer-funded stadiums are a common occurrence in American sports, but the costs outweigh the benefits.”
To finance the project, a surcharge will be added to local sales, hotel, and car rental taxes. Arlington, the home of the Rangers, is still paying off the $325 million it contributed to the Dallas Cowboys' new football stadium, which opened in 2009. Ray Davis, a co-owner of the Rangers with a net worth of $2.3 billion, must be pleased that Arlington residents may pick up half the bill.
Taxpayer-funded stadiums are a common occurrence in American sports, but the costs outweigh the benefits. As University of Michigan professor Judith Grant Long shows, the average public bill for each of the 121 U.S. professional sports stadiums operating at the end of the 2010 season was $259 million--78 percent of total average costs. American taxpayers lost $31 billion for professional sports stadiums--even if they never watched a game.
Texas Rangers Head To Dallas
The Texas Rangers have been located in Arlington, Texas since 1972. But rumors about a move to Dallas, just 20 miles east, have Arlington politicians willing to spend hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars to keep their team. Back in May, it was estimated that taxpayers would pay $450 million, but the price tag has since risen to $500 million. If previous taxpayer-funded stadiums are any indication, Arlington residents can expect this number to grow even higher as construction and maintenance costs accrue.
Proponents of the new stadium point to research that shows the annual economic effect of the project will be $77.5 million. However, this figure is exaggerated.
Some--mostly team owners--argue that these massive subsidies pay for themselves. Economists disagree. Studies have consistently shown that public financing for sports stadiums does not pay off. Proponents of these taxpayer subsidies fail to realize that people will spend their money on other things besides tickets and beer.
The small bump in tourism and economic activity does not come close to covering the millions in associated costs the public pays. Promises of neighborhood revitalizations rarely pan out. Subsidizing a stadium either means that taxes have to increase or public services must be cut. There is no way to wave a magic wand and avoid this reality.
Come November 8, the planned date for a referendum to approve public funding of the new stadium, the citizens of Arlington should question whether subsidizing the Rangers and their owners is the best use of their hard-earned money. They will likely conclude that it is not.
This piece originally appeared on Epic Times
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Jared Meyer is a fellow at the Manhattan Institute's Economics21. Follow him on Twitter here.
This piece originally appeared in Epic Times