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The problem with the liberal vision of economic growth, at least as practiced in NY, is not that we spend big on schools, health-care, mass transit, etc., but that we spend dumb, allowing too much of money to be siphoned by rent-seekers or plain wasted.
usatoday.com/story/opinion/…
usatoday.com/story/opinion/…
If NYers had great schools and hospitals, smoothy running subways and gleaming airports, the money would be worth it.
Instead, we're stuck with the worst of both worlds: sky-high taxes and mediocre to lousy services and infrastructure.
Instead, we're stuck with the worst of both worlds: sky-high taxes and mediocre to lousy services and infrastructure.
The politicians are too paralyzed and/or corrupted to tackle the hard work of efficiency and effectiveness, so they resort to a) throwing more money at stuff and b) offsetting the poor business climate with tax breaks for a lucky few.
It's worth remembering that most of the subsidies offered to Amazon were tax credits offered generally to companies who are creating certain kinds of jobs -- which was Cuomo and Albany's way of mitigating their failure at good public management. cdn.esd.ny.gov/businessprogra…
The deal also included $500M in discretionary capital grants, which, as @EjmEj pointed out, was basically reimbursing Amazon for the cost of another part of the deal, which obliged them to use high-priced union labor for construction. empirecenter.org/publications/b…
The optics (and substance) of handing billions in subsidies to a rich company were terrible. But the bulk of the blame belongs with NY's leaders for offering them, not Amazon for accepting them.
In spite of everything, NYC remains a magnet for smart, ambitious, talented and, yes, rich people. its economy is probably big and strong enough to make up for those 25,000 lost jobs. But the next company thinking of locating here will be leery of trusting its leaders promises.
As long-time critic of Albany's corporate welfare boondoggles, I'm glad to see them discredited.
But the hard work of improving the NY's business climate still needs doing. And too many of the politicians declaring victory today could not care less.
But the hard work of improving the NY's business climate still needs doing. And too many of the politicians declaring victory today could not care less.
.@AnnaMKaplan seems to be a welcome exception.
