Year-Old Program Spends $53 Million, Creates Just 76 Jobs
An unlikely group of business leaders, conservatives, and liberals from across New York are calling for a halt to “Start-Up NY” following claims that the statewide employment program has spent $53 million in advertising and created only 76 jobs. The program recently marked one year since its creation by New York’s Empire State Development agency. The program created 62 tax-exempt zones on SUNY campuses and elsewhere. Approved businesses in those zones are eligible for ten-year exemptions from state taxes, and their employees can receive five-year exemptions from personal income taxes.
NFIB joined with other business groups and advocates from a range of political viewpoints to call for Start-Up NY’s suspension pending a comprehensive audit. The groups issued a joint statement about the program’s implementation, writing, “[Start-Up NY’s] selection process is opaque and at risk for favoritism and corruption; and sufficiently overseeing the fairness and effectiveness of the program requires expensive auditing and oversight, far beyond what is in place.” Empire State Development President Howard Zemsky defended the program’s continuing potential. “The state approved 54 businesses to join the program in 2014,” Zemsky said. “These companies committed to create nearly 2,100 jobs and invest $91-million over five years, which is a rapid start for a brand-new, first of its kind program.”
What Happens Next
The state’s 2015-2016 budget authorizes $50 million to be spent on the program, which was agreed upon before the program’s inefficiency became public.
What This Means For Small Business
Start-Up NY has spent tens of millions of taxpayer dollars that could have been spent much more wisely in ways that would have had more direct benefits for New York’s small business owners. New York has many policies that are unfriendly to small business, and the state consistently ranks poorly in business friendliness.
Additional Reading
Other news media outlets covering the program include WGRZ-TV, WHEC-TV, and Time Warner Cable News.
