Recently, the Tax Foundation released its 2014 State Busi-ness Tax Climate Index and New York was once again ranked dead last.
Last year, New York slipped from 49th to 50th in its ranking, and we haven’t progressed since.
This is troubling news for anyone who cares about our economic recovery.
When New York’s tax policies are expensive and complicated, it is difficult for the state to compete when it comes to attracting and keeping businesses and the jobs that come with them.
Changes in a state’s tax policy can have a profound effect on the economy.
The power of broad-based tax relief for businesses and individuals can immediately give our economic recovery the needed boost and jump-start it needs.
New York’s taxes collectively, especially its incredibly high income taxes, have rendered our job creators helpless in this horribly weak economy.
As we’ve seen over the years, businesses and residents have left the state in droves to look for better and more affordable opportunities in other states.
While I am happy to invest in our economy with incentives and other tax breaks, Albany cannot forget these are but temporary fixes for the larger problem of excessive and punishing taxes.
What happens when the incentives dry up or no longer outweigh the negatives of bad tax policy?
Businesses close up shop and move elsewhere.
For example, the Tax Foundation cited Dell Computers, which received $240 million in tax incentives to locate to North Carolina—the business took the opportunity and fled this state after only four years.
New York is losing businesses to other states. Nearby, General Electric is moving more of its operations from upstate New York to Clearwater, Florida.
No surprise that Florida is ranked as having the fifth-best business tax climate.
Politicians need to wake up and see that our tax policy is a real detriment to our economy, and most importantly, to our citizens.
We need to remove the job-killing corporate income tax.
We need to implement an affordable and simple income tax rate that makes sense for everyone.
We need to look at our sales taxes, gas taxes, property taxes, unemployment insurance taxes, and any other meddlesome tax, fee or fine that stymies economic growth.
We must get unemployed New Yorkers back to work.
In the end, the spending and the taxes New York collects to supposedly help people are only hurting state residents.
I hope this two-year business tax climate losing streak, coupled with underwhelming economic development and job growth, will be a wake-up call for everyone in Albany and will inspire action to change it.
I welcome your suggestions or ideas about what New York can do to make our economy strong. Please call my Herkimer Office at (315) 866-1632, my Johnstown Office at (518) 762-6486, or email me at butlerm@assembly.state.ny.us.
