Gov. Peter Shumlin welcomed PayPal to relocate to Vermont after the company announced it would not go forward with an expansion of its North Carolina office.PayPal made the announcement Tuesday. The planned expansion would have brought 400 new jobs to Charlotte.The company pulled its expansion plans after a statewide anti-LGBT law passed last month. Other companies have threatened to do the same, but PayPal is the first to follow through on its threat.Shumlin sent a letter Tuesday to PayPal CEO Dan Schulman, touting Vermont’s history of non-discrimination and protecting citizens’ civil rights.“I believe Vermont would be a great place for you to locate your facility,” Shumlin said in his letter. “We would welcome you -- as we do all our citizens no matter their gender, race, sexual orientation or gender identity -- with open arms.”Vermont was the first state to legislate marriage equality in 2009.Shumlin also explained how Vermont was already home to several other technology-sector businesses.Schulman earned his bachelor’s degree from Middlebury College.Shumlin’s letter did not mention the possibility of the state offering financial incentives for PayPal to relocate to Vermont.Mississippi passed a similarly restrictive bill Tuesday, while Georgia's governor vetoed his state's version over economic impact concerns.Get the WPTZ app

Gov. Peter Shumlin welcomed PayPal to relocate to Vermont after the company announced it would not go forward with an expansion of its North Carolina office.

PayPal made the announcement Tuesday. The planned expansion would have brought 400 new jobs to Charlotte.


The company pulled its expansion plans after a statewide anti-LGBT law passed last month. Other companies have threatened to do the same, but PayPal is the first to follow through on its threat.

Shumlin sent a letter Tuesday to PayPal CEO Dan Schulman, touting Vermont’s history of non-discrimination and protecting citizens’ civil rights.

“I believe Vermont would be a great place for you to locate your facility,” Shumlin said in his letter. “We would welcome you -- as we do all our citizens no matter their gender, race, sexual orientation or gender identity -- with open arms.”

Vermont was the first state to legislate marriage equality in 2009.

Shumlin also explained how Vermont was already home to several other technology-sector businesses.

Schulman earned his bachelor’s degree from Middlebury College.

Shumlin’s letter did not mention the possibility of the state offering financial incentives for PayPal to relocate to Vermont.

Mississippi passed a similarly restrictive bill Tuesday, while Georgia's governor vetoed his state's version over economic impact concerns.