We have government-driven economic development going full force in this state. As it stands now, we spend more on economic development than we collect in corporate taxes.
Let’s just think what would happen if we repealed the corporate income tax: We could stop all of the economic development we are doing and get rid of all of those state boards and commissions and stop paying out-of-state firms for economic development advice.
All these firms are doing is giving every kind of scenario except for the one that works – free enterprise.
Let’s talk about free enterprise for a second. It doesn’t take a consulting firm from out of state. It doesn’t take any boards or commissions. All it takes is lowering taxes across the board and for government to get out of the way. South Carolinians are smart enough to take it from there.
All economic development is, is jobs created by academia so they can push the progressive agenda. These are folks who have figured out how to make money on the government dime.
That is where all of this public/private stuff came from, because academia hasn’t a clue how to start a business. They need help from the government and that’s what they think the government is for.
I strongly disagree.
Another part of economic development is our government competing against South Carolina businesses. So let’s get the state, counties and cities out of the real estate business.
In our county of Oconee we are in the broadband business. So our county is using tax dollars and they are in direct competition with AT&T, Charter and Northland Cable, just to name a few.
We also have the City of Seneca wanting to give a hotel chain $1 million and the county to give them a fee-in-lieu-of-taxes break to build a complex. How can government pick winners and loser with our tax dollars?
The real kicker is the rest of the hotels in town have been here for many years paying taxes and being good neighbors. What do they get? Zip, nada, zero.
This kind of “progressive” thinking is killing this country and the entrepreneurial spirit.
I believe the Legislature’s job is to run the state the most effective way possible. What is their answer: more programs, more boards, more commissions, more tax incentives to large corporations. So instead of fixing the problem they create larger government.
How can we become the No. 1 business-friendly state? I’m glad you asked:
- Stop state and local governments from competing with local business.
- Lower taxes across the board.
- When revenue is cut at home what do we do? We cut the spending, so start cutting because we are going to cut the revenue.
- Stop all of the insane regulations from the sate and fed governments so businesses can go back to running their businesses.
- Get our education under control by not teaching to the test and instead focusing on reading, writing, arithmetic, and how to think.
Once again, we could be the freest state in the nation if only our “progressive” Legislature would get out of the way.
Brit Adams is a Citizen Reporter for The Nerve and a businessman who lives in Oconee County.