JACKSON, Miss. (Jan. 30, 2009)—Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour will sign a bill passed by the Mississippi legislature that will grant $19 million in incentives to Cooper Tire & Rubber Co. to keep manufacturing tires in Tupelo, Miss.
The incentives include $7 million for a new building at Tupelo, a $6 million loan and a payroll tax rebate of up to $6 million.
Cooper decided in December to keep open its plants in Tupelo; Findlay, Ohio; and Texarkana, Ark., and close its facility in Albany, Ga. The Findlay-based tire maker made this decision after performing a capacity study of its North American manufacturing facilities.