The voters of Martin County are being asked to re-authorize a business incentive program. The program is spearheaded by the Business Development Board (BDB). It is small potatoes in the realm of government spending. But it is important to note that since it was authorized in 2010, the program has never given out one penny. It came close…once.
So why is it needed? We have been told by the BDB that it is a necessary tool in the toolbox. You know like the special saw you bought in case you decide to make an elaborate rococo headboard.
What exactly would the happen if the voters approve the extension and the County Commission ever voted to award individual companies the opportunity of not paying their fair share of taxes?
It would allow companies moving into the area or expanding their businesses the opportunity to not pay ad valorem taxes under certain circumstances for several years. You can read the BDB’s accurate explanation of the program here
My position has always been that government should not give businesses handouts in any form or manner. The playing field should always be level for everyone. Make no mistake that when you allow Company “A” to pay no or reduced taxes, but not Companies “B” through “H,” government has demonstrated favoritism.
Even if everything is perfect and Company “A” hires more employees and builds a new machine to make its widgets, he is paying less taxes than all other widget makers doing the same thing. How is the economy better? If more widgets need to be produced, more widget factories will open because the market dictates that outcome. Business will do what is needed to make more money. These taxpayer subsidized incentives are government induced profit windfalls for a lucky few.
You do not build strong economies that way. Government needs only to allow all businesses the opportunity to permit, build, and hire capable employees without undue regulatory burdens. Both Palm Beach County and St. Lucie County offer these type subsidies. While programs such as this type of subsidy are used in those two counties and throughout the country, they do not produce any positive national GDP growth.
Time after time companies have moved to an area which gave little or no subsidies to those companies as compared to other governments. Amazon, ConAgra, and other companies base their decision on factors such as workforce availability and quality of life. Even corporate income tax rates are secondary concerns.
The best thing Martin County can do is stop taking months (and sometimes years) to green light a new commercial building. Martin County refuses to allow the housing needed to attract employees for businesses. Even when Stuart, on its city-limit fringes, approves apartments and lower-cost alternative housing, County residents cry no and sometimes County staff and Commissioners do as well.
Our schools need to produce educated employees in trades as well as other disciplines to fill those jobs. You cannot ask someone to create a business here if you make it so hard to open, their employees need to live in other communities, and they can’t find the necessary trained personnel to staff the enterprise.
Government must have as low a tax rate as possible for primarily the employees’ sake. Government needs to provide only those services that government should provide in the least expensive way possible. We do not need water parks and country club golf courses, but we do need adequate recreational areas and parks, roads, and schools. The elected officials need to be good shepherds of our tax dollars.
The Business Development Board received $450,000 of Martin County tax dollars last year. It has in the past and will continue to need that money in the future to keep its doors open. The Board of Directors are politicians and nonprofit executives with some private sector members mostly in banking, law, and real estate. (The Board can be found here
If you want to save nearly a half million dollars of taxpayer money a year, stop funding an organization that claims to be business-oriented yet needs a government handout to survive. There are five Chambers of Commerce in Martin County and an Economic Development Council. Those organizations are listed on the BDB website as having founded the organization. They should fund it too if the BDB is necessary in their opinion.
Better yet if the BDB provided a necessary product or service to the companies it is ostensibly recruiting then that company should pay for the perceived value of that service. Companies pay consultants, accountants, and lawyers all the time for advice. If the BDB has increased Martin County’s tax base through recruitment and retention of businesses, then it should be easy to quantitatively demonstrate that fact to the County.
Government never really demands hard facts. It is more than willing to go along with the fiction that something is being accomplished. Words such as develop, round-table, strategic, and collaborative, are often written and spoke at places such as the BDB. Seldom do you hear the expressions of bottom line or profit because to government and to semi-government organizations it is all about the perception of progress as opposed to concrete results.
The real difference is in the private sector if there is no profit the business closes. In government and organizations like the BDB there is always a future. They call it more funding we call it more tax dollars.
We need to vote NO on re-authorization in August. Then we need to wean the BDB from receiving public funds. Every dollar spent on the BDB is one less dollar for needed resident services. I would rather make sure the County can pave an additional road or hire a few more employees to clean our drainage ditches each year than pay high salaries and fancy rent in Monterey Commons.
County Commissioners hang out with the people that populate the Chambers of Commerce, Economic Council, and the Business Development Board. It is easy for them to continue to fund their friends with your money. We need to make it a little harder to do so.