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New York State Spent Millions On Program For Startups That Created 76 Jobs
Nerval's Lobster writes Last year, the New York state government launched Start-Up NY, a program designed to boost employment by creating tax-free zones for technology and manufacturing firms that partner with academic institutions. Things didn't go quite as planned. In theory, those tax-free zones on university campuses would give companies access to the best young talent and cutting-edge research, but only a few firms are actually taking the bait: According to a report from the state's Department of Economic Development, the program only created 76 jobs last year, despite spending millions of dollars on advertising and other costs. If that wasn't eyebrow-raising enough, the companies involved in the program have only invested a collective $1.7 million so far. The low numbers didn't stop some state officials from defending the initiative. "Given the program was only up and running for basically one quarter of a year," Andrew Kennedy, a senior economic development aide to Governor Cuomo, told Capital New York, "I think 80 jobs is a good number that we can stand behind."
Wait a second -- this program has only been running for one quarter of a year?
76 jobs doesn't sound that bad, on such a short time frame.
Sounds like a pre-mature judgement.
You could modify the tax code such that wealthy people and corporations have to pay their fair share of taxes.
What exactly... is "their fair share"?
I keep hearing people say that without defining what that really is.
Did you know the wealthy already pay most of the taxes? How much more would *you* like them to pay?
"Last year, the New York state government launched Start-Up NY, a program designed to boost employment by creating tax-free zones for technology and manufacturing firms that partner with academic institutions."
See, this is what you are supposed to think, but here is how the truth of the matter reads:
"Last year, the New York state government launched Start-Up NY, a program that allows state politicians to give tax money to their buddies while having the appearance that they care about jobs and the general public."
Their fair share is obviously whatever things cost and I don't feel like paying for myself.
People with EARNED INCOME pay the highest tax rates. Ever wonder why Steve Jobs and other CEO's take a $1 salary? They don't want to pay taxes on EARNED INCOME. Meanwhile, they pay lower taxes on PORTFOLIO INCOME (i.e., stocks and bonds) and PASSIVE INCOME (i.e., real estate). If you don't want to pay your fair share of taxes, stop working for EARNED INCOME.
It appears automation/AI and offshoring are cutting into US jobs and there is no known "new field" that can replace those jobs in the volume needed. The actual need for STEM is either flat or not growing near enough to offset the losses in other fields (despite what the pro-visa lobbyists claim).
"Mass STEM-related entrepreneurship" sounds good on paper, but probably won't fly in practice. As somebody who tried 3 startup businesses can attest, most startups fail*, and the few successful ones eventually automate or outsource just like everybody else to cut labor costs. That's not a recipe for large-volume job creation.
I don't know if there is a magic job policy. Times are changing and the future is too murky to really know if, where, and what the Magic Job Policy is.
I applaud NY for trying something. Sometimes you just have to experiment to find solutions, many of which will fail.
* Some of mine may have taken off eventually, but I had bills to pay and couldn't wait years down the road. Seems only the wealthy have the luxury to take losses up front to gain later, and this is partly why it's a winner-take-all economy. Analysts of Warren Buffet have said that part of the reason for his success is that he's so wealthy he can take gambles the medium-rich cannot. In other words, he's rich because he's rich.
Table-ized A.I.
Woah wait a second.
You're saying that creating Tax Free zones helps create jobs? So why doesn't New York lower taxes for the companies that still reside there, that are threatening to leave to Texas or other lower taxed states?
This is like Cable companies screwing existing customers and favoring customers that are new. I guess it works.
Agent K: A *person* is smart. People are dumb, stupid, panicky animals, and you know it.
Yes, it seems way to early to evaluate the program. This is the very first report; basically it's saying "the program just started". Clicking through the links leads to this one: http://www.crainsnewyork.com/a...
with more numbers in the summary:
The state agency responsible for economic development across New York says companies last year created 76 of the nearly 2,100 new jobs promised over five years in return for tax breaks under the Cuomo administration's Start-Up NY program.
The first annual report from the Department of Economic Development says 30 companies began operating in 2014 among 54 initially approved for the program.
According to the report, they made $1.7 million of some $91 million investments promised over five years as part of Start-Up NY. The program has established 356 tax-free zones at 62 colleges and universities that act as sponsors.
The agency says another 26 businesses have been approved so far this year, while 12 have withdrawn applications.
http://www.geoffreylandis.com
Easy. The cost of maintaining a country is based on the GDP. If the calculated budget is $100, and you hold 12% of the GDP, your fair share is $12. If someone else holds .01% of the GDP, they owe $.01.
Fair share is not every citizen pays the same. This is no a socialist economy where everyone contributes the same to get the same benefits. Some people hold far more than others, so their fair share is much higher. They also reap far more of the benefits of those taxes. A man that owns 10,000 trucks in a trucking company gets a hell of a lot more benefit than the guy that rides the bus across town to his job at McDonald's.
I tired to use Start-Up NY. We called and were told that it was only for out of state businesses opening in New York. They referred me to a small business consulting group at Stony Brook University. They referred me back to Start-Up NY. I had the impression that no one I spoke with knew what they were talking about, and really weren't interested in helping at all. I have even considered writing to Governor Cuomo. I think that Governor Cuomo's concept here is very well intentioned and could be a great benefit to the state. But, from my experience the administrative staff are not executing the Governor's program as intended.
Bullshit. H1b visas exist because companies want low paid captive workers. No other reason.
Government will basically claim ANYTHING improves the economy except the one thing everyone wants: lower taxes across the board.
They'll claim that welfare and UC improve the economy by giving poor people more buying power.
They'll claim tax breaks for crony corporations (auto manufacturers, green energy) give them incentive to hire.
But apparently, this doesn't work if we let everyone keep more of their money. They'll just bury it in the backyard.
Gamingmuseum.com: Give your 3D accelerator a rest.
People with EARNED INCOME pay the highest tax rates.
While that is true, they pay far more in total dollars than you do.
If you were to try and tax their portfolio income at a higher rate, they'd just come up with ways around that, or run their businesses differently.
You could raise the capital gains tax to 40% if you like, but you wouldn't like the result in the economy and it wouldn't raise as much money as you think. Some of it would get moved offshore, some of it would be put into different investments to avoid the tax, and some of it would simply "disappear" into a black market of investments.
People of means generally won't pay such taxes if they can find any other option, and in today's global economy, they can.
Now if you're suggesting that we should lower "earned income tax rates", I'd agree with you. I personally think we should do a flat 20% tax on anything you earn, active or passive, with no deductions. It won't happen of course, but it would level the playing field and that is a low enough number that the wealthy would largely pay.
Simple google search will reveal that "October 22, 2013 was the official day the program has started by CUOMO".
Typical distortion and deception from the governmental officers.
The problem with NY is that they are offering as a perk something which is offered by other states for free, without even asking, such as low taxes and pro-business government.