Reform corporate welfare in New York

It is time for the New York state Legislature to ensure that jobs are actually being created with the billions of dollars that our state and local governments hand out each year under the guise of economic development.

Thirty years ago, government funding for economic development was targeted to local infrastructure development that would attract the type of jobs the community wanted. That way, if the companies departed, the investment stayed. Today, "economic development" is known as smoke-stack chasing or corporate welfare. Communities compete with one another by offering lucrative handouts and giveaways to companies to move jobs from one part of the state to another. It is increasingly a net zero game in terms of job creation. A few companies are the big winners; their competitors are put at an economic disadvantage; and the taxpayers pick up the bill.

A recent report by an upstate paper found that half of the companies receiving economic development funds from New York state fell short of their "job goals." Almost a quarter actually cut jobs. But the state often fails to recoup from the companies that fail to meet their requirements, even when many millions of dollars are involved. A stark contrast is how government officials mete out punishment when it involves a few hundred dollars to poor families receiving welfare.