Iowans respond to delayed project giving Apple $200 million in public subsidies: 'It's just welfare'

WAUKEE, Iowa – Residents of a Des Moines suburb criticized a government agreement with Apple that gave the tech giant $200 million in public subsidies for a project that's years behind schedule.

"It’s not fair. They don’t give me anything," a Waukee man told Fox News. "I go there as a citizen, as a single person, they’re not going to listen to me."

Apple reached an agreement with state and local officials in 2017 that gave the tech giant $213 million in public subsidies in exchange for 50 permanent jobs at a data center it would build in Waukee. Residents have criticized the agreement for lacking transparency and for its perceived unfairness. 

"I just don’t think it’s right," a Waukee resident told Fox News. "The small businesses in Waukee should get that type of a break and not the super huge conglomerates."