Column: Is Minnesota the land of 10,000 jobs, and no more?
Published 12:00 am Monday, April 28, 2008
By Bob Gunther, Guest Column
Minnesota is known as the land of 10,000 lakes.
But if the DFL has its way, it will soon become the land of 10,000 jobs and no more, as its shortsighted vision regarding job creation will continue to force businesses to leave for states that actually encourage growth and expansion.
The latest example happened last week, when Delta Airlines announced it was going to merge with Twin Cities-based Northwest Airlines.
Losing Northwest will cost Minnesota 13,000 jobs.
What was the DFL-led legislature&8217;s response? Nothing.
And why would Delta want to stay in Minnesota? Georgia, where Delta is currently headquartered, has a 6 percent corporate tax, while Minnesota has a 9.8 percent corporate tax.
House Republicans immediately suggested that we enact policies that would lessen corporate tax burdens and provide incentives to lure Delta&8217;s headquarters to town.
Our idea was basically mocked by DFL leaders, who then didn&8217;t bother coming up with their own plan.
It begs the question: Does the DFL have a plan to create jobs in this state?
If you analyzed some of the legislation their caucus has championed this year, you would likely conclude that it doesn&8217;t care if companies come or go, because it wants to remove all corporate incentives that entice and keep job providers in Minnesota.
By threatening funding for the Minnesota Investment Fund &8212; the only statewide tool we have that assists with economic development projects &8212; we stand to lose 18 projects and nearly 1,500 new jobs across the state this year alone.
By threatening our Job Opportunity Building Zone prpgra, &8212; the most significant tool rural Minnesota has to entice companies to expand or relocate &8212; we are inviting our rural companies to move to neighboring states. It&8217;s worth noting that Wisconsin has 48 total incentive programs to attract new business, while Iowa has 31 and North Dakota has 22.
Minnesota has 13.
Now is the time to step up and bring job providers to this state.
But instead of enticing Delta officials to relocate here, we let them walk.
And instead of enhancing current incentive programs that encourage other corporations to move here, we sit on our hands.
The DFL-led legislature is in crisis mode. In 12 months, it blew through a $2 billion surplus and spent us into a $935 million deficit.
It&8217;s proposed a series of tax increases that would help eliminate this shortfall, yet has done nothing to improve the one area that could permanently improve Minnesota&8217;s economic condition: job creation.
The DFL has approved a bonding bill and called it a &8220;jobs&8221; bill, but that&8217;s not going to cut it.
It&8217;s time for legislative leaders to stop blaming Gov. Tim Pawlenty for not getting things done and start working with him &8212; particularly on Minnesota&8217;s economic development programs.
Delta is already flying out of town. Without some sort of legislative action, it won&8217;t be long before other companies begin to line up on the runway.
State Rep. Bob Gunther, a Republican from Fairmont, is the former chairman of the Minnesota House Jobs and Economic Development Finance Committee.