On Monday, State Comptroller and Democratic gubernatorial nominee H. Carl McCall spoke at Buffalo State College, primarily about creating jobs and keeping college graduates from leaving Western New York. His plan, which suggests tax credits for companies who hire employees at a higher wage rate than usual or employ graduates of a New York State "institute of higher education," is a step in the right direction for the state and the region.
Under the plan, as explained by McCall, the state will offer tax credits of $750 per employee earning 125 percent of the average regional wage. The purpose of this is to create higher paying jobs as an incentive to keep local graduates in the area and infuse more money into the local economy. The second aspect of the plan will offer a $1,500 incentive to companies that hire graduates of any SUNY university, college or community college, so long as the graduates retain their position inside the state for two years.
McCall's plan is the first in a long while that targets the exodus of youth from Western New York. It also aims at repairing the damage the state has done to corporations based in Western New York. Companies in New York are taxed heavily, and some can no longer afford to stay. McCall's proposal would be a vote of confidence in the businesses as well as an effort to keep graduates in the area.
Another attractive aspect of the plan, should it be passed, is that it would be financed by the state. The burden would not fall on the taxpayers of the city of Buffalo or Erie County, neither of which is in a position to be offering sizable tax breaks to either group. When asked whether his idea would be damaging to the state's precarious financial situation, McCall stated that he believes the long-term benefit of the implementation of this plan would outweigh any present budgetary concerns.
Graduates are leaving upstate New York, and it is not because of the snow. The job situation has deteriorated, and high-paying jobs are particularly hard to find. These proposals, while not ensuring that the Western New York population will rebound to its pre-1950 numbers, at least offers a real incentive to both corporations and potential employees to stay here or even move here.
There are few issues weightier in this region than jobs, or the lack thereof, and population loss. Should either the comptroller ascend or the governor remain, this will be an issue that compels the attention of students, businesses and families in Western New York.
McCall has taken a right step in the direction of solving this problem, and since there is a proposal on the table, it is now the responsibility of those presently in power and those who would assume that power to implement such a policy.
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
