ALBANY – Chenango County representatives in Albany are among dozens of New York lawmakers firing against Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s signature jobs program, saying that the price paid for the program by taxpayers far outweighs the yielded benefits.
Several New York lawmakers on both sides of the political isle criticized the governor’s Start-Up NY program on Wednesday following multiple reports of poor results.
During a legislative hearing, elected officials called for greater transparency when it comes to economic development programs like Start-Up NY which was launched in 2013 by the Cuomo adminstration to spur jobs and entrepreneurship.
Start-Up NY promises new and expanding businesses the opportunity to operate tax-free for 10 years on or near eligible university or college campuses in New York State. Partnering with these schools gives businesses direct access to advanced research laboratories, development resources and experts in key industries.
But the program generated just 408 jobs since 2013 in spite of the $53 million the Cuomo administration paid for an advertising blitz promoting it.
While many lawmakers called for changes to the state’s handling of economic development activities this week, Start-Up NY was denounced by Republican Assemblyman Gary Finch (R-Springport) back in July when the state released reports on the program.
“We can’t keep throwing money at this just because the governor won’t admit it isn’t working,” said Finch. “Initially, we were all hopeful that Start-Up New York would be a successful public-private partnership that would be a part of a broader effort to cut taxes, reform regulation and put more New Yorkers to work. We’ve seen just the opposite.”
Another report released by the state reveals that Empire State Development Corp., the state’s primary economic development agency, can’t verify that companies receiving millions in tax credits through the Excelsior jobs program are actually meeting obligations. That report also highlights a lowered standard by the corporation due to companies’ failure to meet expectations and verify whether jobs created were full time or part time.
“When this governor was first elected, he promised transparency and in his first budget, required all discretionary spending to be line-itemized in the budget. Now, we are getting pet-projects and likely pay-to-play discretionary programs that show up in the budget at the eleventh hour and we don’t find out what the programs do until the press and medial report on them,” Assemblyman Clifford Crouch (R-Bainbridge) said in a statement made following the release of the reports last month.
Crouch has joined several other officials in a push for more transparency and ethical protocols as it relates to economic development funding, namely the $2.6 billion in discretionary funds Gov. Cuomo is able to utilize without significant scrutiny or independent oversight.
“These are all serious issues and when you are talking about multi-billion dollar taxpayer-funded programs being funded without oversight or accountability, that’s a serious offense,” Crouch said.
The Associated Press has reported that criticism is also shared by both the left-leaning Fiscal Policy Institute as well as the conservative Empire Center for Public Policy. Each criticized the state’s approach to economic development this week, naming Start-Up NY specifically as fruitless and wasteful.