Posts Tagged ‘New York Excelsior Program’

Plus Ça Change

Thursday, June 24th, 2010
Reflecting Failure

Reflecting Failure

Waste and abuse that was tolerated in the boom economy is now coming under long overdue scrutiny. The Associated Press reports that New York State is preparing to junk the Empire Zone program, which was ostensibly to help businesses create jobs and expand the tax base in under-served communities. In fact, it was nothing more than welfare for politically connected large corporations. The independent Citizens Budget Commission found that most companies failed to deliver the promised jobs in exchange for substantial tax breaks awarded by the Empire Zone program. Companies that failed to meet the targets for job creation or their own investment include major Fortune 500 companies, such as Coca-Cola and Target. But before we break out the champagne and celebrate, let’s ask two questions: first, does New York State intend to demand a refund of the tax credits improperly used by close to 5,000 companies in the Empire program? Second, does New York really believe that the Excelsior Program, which it is touting as the success to Empire, will be any less prone to corruption and abuse?