Amazon HQ2 Decision: Tax Rates "Critical" | Eastern North Carolina Now

    Publisher's note: This post, by Brian Balfour, was originally published in the corporate welfare section of Civitas's online edition.

• A well-educated, highly productive workforce, access to markets and suppliers, sound infrastructure, and a high quality of life for employees are more important to corporate leaders than state taxes, according to numerous surveys, studies and popular rankings of "business friendly" states.

    The above quote was made in a paper by the far-left Budget & Tax Center in April 2013. In a desperate attempt to fight against tax cuts for hard-working North Carolinians, they repeatedly attempted to convince legislators that state taxes play little to no role in state economic growth.

    Why bring this up now?

    North Carolina, among many other states, are in a tizzy trying to land the reported "second headquarters" of Amazon.

    And what did Amazon itself say was the most important selection criteria for the new project?

• When Amazon made its headquarters announcement, it provided a list of factors that would influence its decision. It was clear about incentives, calling them "critical."
• "A stable and business-friendly environment and tax structure will be high-priority considerations for the Project," the company says, which includes incentives to offset initial capital outlay and ongoing costs.

    Sorry, leftists. Taxes do matter.