Workers don’t need a job? Huh, good to know. . .
I’ve negotiated tax breaks for companies bringing jobs to NY before, and I haven’t seen one that wasn’t worth it. The state may give a $300M break to a company, but that company in turn brings hundreds or thousands of jobs here that over the years results in billions of dollars in economic activity and investments. It’s not this cut and dry thing where government says, “Hey evil corporation, don’t pay us taxes for the next two years. It’s cool, we don’t need it.”
You have to understand we live in a global marketplace now, especially with the advancements in technology. 40 years ago a company was choosing whether to put their plant in NY or PA. Now state’s are competing not just with each other but with other countries as well. So if I’m a CEO looking out for my shareholders, why am I going to want to do business in a state that taxes me outrageously inside of a country that taxes me outrageously when instead I can go to Ireland who has a 12% corporate tax?