National business-friendly policies making a difference
The latest US labor report showed an impressive job market, and Wall Street surged when those numbers were released Friday. The country gained 313,000 jobs in February, the most since July 2016. Unemployment remained low. Federal tax reform, a reduction in burdensome regulations at the federal level, and a stronger economy have created a small business surge around the country.
Unfortunately, the numbers are not so rosy in Pennsylvania. Also on Friday, the state released its jobs report for January showing a drop of 6,300. While there has been a 1.1-percent increase in jobs over the course of a year in the Commonwealth, that figure appears paltry when compared to the national picture. Pennsylvania unemployment remained at 4.8-percent, higher than the national rate of 4.1-percent.
NFIB recently testified at a Pennsylvania House hearing on state tax reform. We told lawmakers that, despite being the 6th largest economy in the nation, PA ranks 48th in job creation. We encourage policymakers to lower state taxes so business owners have more resources to reinvest in their companies, to hire more employees, and to boost the local economies.
As federal tax reform is spurring national business growth, Pennsylvania tax policy is stunting it. And, just days after the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act was signed, Gov. Wolf immediately reversed a state tax rule on expensing that disadvantages corporations. Pennsylvania is the only state in the nation that does not allow tax deferral for like-kind exchanges which help businesses grow, even though the IRS allow it.
If Pennsylvania wants to attract business to our state, and not send businesses already here fleeing to other more business-friendly states, it must take a lesson from the federal lawmakers who voted for tax reform and an administration that has kickstarted the economy.
