Jennifer Conway and Michael Kracker

Guest columnists

It is a new day in Albany. Democrats, led by the new Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, now control the Senate chamber, bringing unified Democratic control to state government.

The new legislative session brings opportunities to advance solutions to upstate’s economic challenges.

In an effort to engage with our leaders in Albany and strengthen the upstate economy, Unshackle Upstate and the Greater Binghamton Chamber of Commerce have recently released their legislative agendas. These comprehensive documents share our respective organization’s pro-growth positions on a number of important issues.

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A fundamental priority for both organizations is lowering taxes and controlling state spending. A 2018 analysis from WalletHub found that New York state has the highest overall tax burden in the nation. Additionally, the Tax Foundation ranked New York state’s business tax climate as the third-worst last year.

We often hear how New York is “leading the nation” when it comes to progressive social issues. We challenge Governor Cuomo and our legislative leaders to lead the nation on broad-based tax relief and fiscal responsibility. Hard-working taxpayers, who continue to flee New York for other states, are tired of being treated like a bottomless ATM.

On a positive note, we’re encouraged by the support from the governor and state Senate for a permanent 2 percent property tax cap. Since 2011, the cap has saved homeowners billions. Our organizations have been strong supporters of a permanent property tax cap, and we call on the Assembly to pass this critical measure as soon as possible.

Promoting investment in workforce development is another shared advocacy goal. Employers across the state are unable to fill positions because of a lack of qualified candidates. In Broome County, there are more than open 4,000 jobs. Albany can help close the skills gap by investing in locally driven workforce development.

Providing the upstate workforce with valuable skills will be life-changing. For example, New York state’s median wage for STEM occupations is $74,490 a year, which is 67 percent higher than the median annual wage for all workers in the state. This is the type of economic progress that we desperately need.

While we’re committed to championing proactive items, we’re ready to fight back against burdensome proposals that would hurt taxpayers and employers.

The expansion of the state’s prevailing wage mandate to all projects that receive public funding is especially troubling. A 2017 report from The Empire Center found that prevailing wage drives up the cost of public construction projects by 13 percent to 25 percent. Applying this costly mandate to private projects, including Regional Economic Development Council initiatives, will be a death sentence for many projects. Expanding the prevailing wage will lead to fewer upstate construction jobs at a time when many communities are still recovering from the Great Recession.

Additionally, we oppose a government-run, single-payer health insurance scheme, costly energy mandates and efforts to expand paid leave. These and other anti-growth measures will make New York’s business climate even more toxic than it is now.

We recognize the new reality of state government and hope that our leaders in Albany will recognize the tough economic realities in the Southern Tier and other struggling upstate communities.

Jennifer Conway is president and CEO of the Greater Binghamton Chamber of Commerce. Michael Kracker is the executive director of Unshackle Upstate.

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