Rep. Mike Talboy, D-Kansas City, has filed a bill aimed at ending the back and forth poaching across borders of jobs. From the news release:
Seeking to foster regional economic cooperation, House Minority Leader Mike Talboy today filed legislation that would prohibit Missouri from offering tax credits to companies that seek to relocate jobs to the state from within 30 miles of the Missouri border provided that the neighboring state that would lose the jobs has a similar law preventing it from poaching Missouri jobs.
“When Missouri uses taxpayer money to lure jobs from Kansas or Illinois, the benefit is merely short-term as those states will retaliate by subsidizing the poaching of Missouri jobs,” said Talboy, D-Kansas City. “Missouri and its neighboring states must enter into an armistice in this economic border war so that we all can grow our economies and create jobs without harming each other to do so.”
Rather than engaging in costly and never-ending economic combat with its eight neighboring states, Talboy said the millions of taxpayer dollars Missouri spends every year on economic development would be better spent on encouraging companies to create in state that are truly new and not merely relocated from a few miles away.
“Some companies, particularly in the Kansas City and St. Louis metropolitan areas, know that the mere threat of hopping the state line can help them extract taxpayer funds from their home state without creating a single new job in the region,” Talboy said. “A no-poaching agreement between Missouri and its neighbors would take such threats off the table and save taxpayers millions of dollars.”
All Kansas City-area state representatives from both parties are co-sponsoring Talboy’s legislation, House Bill 901, as are House Speaker Steve Tilley, R-Perryville, and House Majority Leader Tim Jones, R-Eureka.
This is the closest thing to a sensible approach I've seen to deal with the never ending tax relief and tax credits for corporations.
ReplyDeleteCan we get this passed? Can we get something similar within the whole USA? Can we get something similar on a Global basis?
The madness of giving corporations break after break must end. I understand both sides of the issue, but I do not believe that competition nor the free market system is served when States and Countries provide cut after cut to "win" a corporation's residency. Corporations and the Chamber want us to believe that is true - but they have their own agenda.
Individual States and the USA need to take control. Something has to be done to stop the tax cut madness and stop putting all tax burdens on Main Street America.
Respectfully request that actual bill numbers be included with each article.
ReplyDeleteThank you.