What Makes North Carolina a Good Place to do Business?

Jul 4

The Republican Legislature thinks cutting taxes is the answer.

They have reduced corporate taxes to 0.

That might have been enough in the old days, when manufacturing was strong here, and you needed a strong back and willingness to work hard.

But jobs in the 21st Century are different.

Governor Cooper has a plan too; one he has been working on in spite of the limited resources in our state in the last few years. He knows that to be successful in bringing good paying jobs into the state--including in rural areas--we need to offer incentives that will enable the state to grow, attract and retain well-trained workers. We need to provide quality schools for the children of those workers and the company's leadership. We need to ensure a good transportation system for business and for residents and guarantee widespread, reliable high-speed broadband.

Governor Cooper’s success in bringing businesses to NC can be measured by what businesses have made the decision to locate in North Carolina. Look at this list of companies who decided to come to North Carolina in 2021 and the first half of 2022!

Vinfast (7500 jobs in Moncure, minimum salary of $51,096)
Boom Supersonic (1761 jobs in Greensboro, average salary of $68,792)
Apple (3000 jobs in Wake County RTP, average salary: $186K)
Toyota (1750 jobs in Randolph County near Liberty, average salary $62,000)
Fidelity (1500 jobs in Durham County (RTP), no salary range provided)
Google (1000 jobs in 1000 jobs, Durham County (downtown), no salary provided)
Fujifilm Diosynth (725 jobs in Holly Springs, average salary $99,848)
Credit Karma (600 jobs in Charlotte, average salary $156,000)
White River Marine Group (502 jobs in New Bern, no salary provided)
MasterBrand Cabinets (464 jobs in Kinston, no salary provided)
RobinHood (389 jobs in Charlotte, average salary $76,000)
Invitae (374 jobs in Morrisville, average salary $91,176)

Since 2013, our Republican Legislative has focused on its hackneyed call to reduce taxes. We’ve been sold that GOP argument many times before: cut taxes on the corporations and the rich and the wealth will trickle down to the rest of us. That false promise hasn’t delivered in the past, and it’s not going to deliver now. We also know that corporations will not be lured by tax cuts alone. To be successful they need workers with technical skills, excellent schools, roads to deliver goods, and reliable Broadband.

These taxes Republicans seek to eliminate in fact, provide the income that allows our state to build the components of a good life for these new businesses and their workers. Their tax-cutting strategy might have made sense in 1994 but not in 2022.

Judging from the recent state budget, the Republican-led Legislature is not interested in investing in the services and benefits vital to developing new business development. They simply want to stuff money in the rainy-day fund or cut taxes. Since 2013, the GOP leaders have instituted a tax cut that amounts to savings of $47,000 annually for the richest North Carolinians while the bottom 80% receive an average savings of just $683 [North Carolina Budget and Tax Report, 2022]. The GOP leaders are making bad decisions for our future. Their new tax structure will force the state and localities to find future revenue in sales and use taxes which puts the burden of supporting public services like schools on everyday North Carolinians and lets the wealthy contribute a much smaller portion. Not Fair!

Just recently, we learned that current tax revenue for North Carolina will produce more than expected--$6 billion [$4.2 B in 2022 and $2 B in 2023] more. Immediately, Governor Cooper announced that this increase can allow the state to fill in the gaps in the budget and “to build on our success by investing in good schools, quality healthcare, resilient infrastructure and clean air and water" [Officials: Expect $4.2B More NC Revenue This Year, $2B Next]. The GOP Legislative leadership doesn’t seem interested in these investments. A joint news release from the Republican leadership in the Legislature says they will “continue on this track of responsible and disciplined spending” [Officials: Expect $4.2B More NC Revenue This Year, $2B Next].

We need a Legislature that understands what investment means, that understands the importance of education, of supporting families, of having inclusive Broadband and good roads in bringing new businesses to North Carolina. We need to support Governor Cooper’s plan for North Carolina by electing Democrats to the State House and State Senate to protect his vetoes and to create a fair tax structure for North Carolina. We need Democratic members of our Legislature who will support building strong communities—spending revenue from taxes wisely.