The petition
The New York State Empire Zone system needs to be fixed before it should be used any more. New York State has some of the highest taxes in the nation, yet tax reductions are being given to businesses with little or no guarantees that jobs will be created in return. These loopholes have been widely reported on by newspapers such as the Syracuse Post Standard, yet the Post Standard also reports that politicians are calling for more empire zones. While one can certainly see the benefits of using tax cuts to attract businesses to New York State, we need to close the loopholes and get a guarantee on returns before we expand the use of this system.
With that in mind, I urge all Albany politicians to move forward and pass the bill recently proposed by Assemblyman Richard Brodsky regarding empire zone reform. Perhaps the two most important parts of this bill are the parts calling for a $10000 per hire limit on benefits to a company, and the proposed recapture provisions that allow the state to take back money if the business does not follow through on its promises. The per hire limit will force businesses to hire more people if they wish to receive more benefits, and the recapture provisions will allow the state to properly enforce a guarantee on whatever promises the companies have made.
I hope that both parties can put aside their differences and quickly pass such legislation for the good of New York State and its economy.
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