Wish lists, part two
Before he announced his candidacy for governor, Andrew Cuomo had gathered a team to study every aspect of state government and what could be done to streamline it, consolidate agencies, provide tax relief to property owners and to make New York a business-friendly state. That last promise is the one we”™ve asked our business leaders what they”™d like to see the new governor do to make this a reality.
Now the fanfare is over, the New Year has begun and New York has a slate of elected officials who have promised to deliver much and to restore the luster to the Empire State. Our business leaders have been quite vocal in what they”™d like to see happen in New York. Here are more of their responses to what they”™d like to see the Cuomo administration bring to the table:
Michael Oates
President/CEO
Hudson Valley Economic Development Corp.
“I would like to see Mr. Cuomo follow through on some of the issues he brought up during his campaign; an effort to reduce the tax burden within the state. Â I want him to be aggressive when it comes to attracting new business as he promised, with a keen eye on cluster development for businesses.
“We are committed to working closely with the new administration. As partners, I believe we can truly become the Empire State once again, a place where business wanted to be located, and make it the leading economic engine in the country.”
Josh Sommers
President/CEO Focus Media
Chairman, Sullivan County Partnership
“The most vital duty our new governor has is to boost the fortunes of New York by demonstrating that the state is open for business and to do it with concrete actions, not simply talk about it.
“One way Mr. Cuomo could ”˜walk the walk”™ is to give our economic development teams the tools it needs to attract and retain companies. The state closed the door on Macy”™s, synonymous with New York. Could more have been done to help bring its warehouse/distribution center to Orange County, along with the 1,000 permanent and hundreds of seasonal jobs it would have created. The distribution center is heading to West Virginia!  “Slicing through the bureaucracy at all levels to speed decisions to operate at the speed of business, not at the pace of government, would be a tremendous aid in business attraction, retention and job creation.
“It is imperative Mr. Cuomo gain control of the state”™s finances within the next few months. Felix Rohatyn, among others, believes, for all practical purposes, that our state is broke. Rohatyn is the investment banker who helped New York City resolve its fiscal crisis and avoid bankruptcy in the 1970s. He is quite knowledgeable about the extremely serious problem we face.”
Jennifer Maher
Chairwoman
Putnam County Chambers of Commerce
“I  would like to see the Cuomo administration develop and support legislation that will cut costs for the small-business owner. Doing business in this region has become so expensive that it”™s putting a real damper on investment and innovation. Now is the time to take corrective action. We need to make New York a great state to do business in, not make it difficult to build and grow here. We have already lost two Congressional seats because we are losing population. Our young talent is moving out. We need to create the jobs that will make it possible for them to remain here and contribute to the Empire State.”
Edward Arace
Managing Partner
Arace & Company Consulting L.L.C.
“Take on the Legislature, lobbyists and special-interest groups and cut taxes, eliminate onerous mandated programs to make New York state once again attractive to businesses. Mr. Cuomo needs to stem the tide of our citizens and businesses fleeing New York for other states which offer lower cost of living and a better economy.”
Amy Stern
Executive Director
Hospice of Rockland
“Palliative care is growing here, and we, like our counterparts all over the region, are doing more with less as the demand grows for services. Nonprofits serve a vital need in every community, with many relying on non-paid volunteers to keep programs going. We need relief from the state, particularly when it comes to the onerous MTA tax. It is making it difficult, if not impossible, to enhance our current programs, create new programs or to hire additional staff. If the MTA is such an important part of the state”™s infrastructure, why isn”™t the entire state paying for it?”
March Gallagher
Deputy Director for Economic Development
Ulster County
“Make New York a business friendly state; that”™s the way the Empire State should be. This can be done by adding two vital components: the first is certainty: the certainty that our economic development programs can”™t be changed midstream. The second component is our current corporate tax structure: it is not business friendly.
“The Empire Zone program may have had some abuses; nobody is denying that. But to do away with it and replace it with the much less business-attractive Excelsior Program is not working. We have lost Macy”™s distribution center to another state, which would have provided hundreds of jobs for several counties. We are all working together as a region. If one county lands a great company, it”™s a plus for all of us. Certainly Macy”™s would have provided jobs for several counties, not just Orange. Mr. Cuomo has promised to make New York a great place to do business, a promise all of us as economic development directors hope will become a reality in this new administration.”
Christopher Pawelski
Owner
Pawelski Farms
“Agriculture is the backbone of New York”™s economy and a central facet of the rural tax base. I hope the new governor views any potential legislation affecting agriculture with that fundamental fact in mind. The very detrimental and self-appointed advocate-driven farm labor bill is just one example of ill-conceived legislation that would be damaging to the farm community. If its proponents raise it again, I would hope Mr. Cuomo would look at the effect it would have on farm employers and how it would potentially devastate the upstate economy.
“Farmers recognize the dire situation of the state’s finances, but we would hope funding relating to agriculture. such as economic development projects, marketing projects and applied scientific research would not be disproportionately cut in future state budgets.”