Tillis reiterated the leadership’s commitment to securing the best business climate in the world by making significant reforms to the state’s rules and regulations. “Non-value-added regulations are going to be eliminated,” he said.
Chamber VP of Governmental Affairs John McAlister told business leaders to watch for legislation on rules and regulations in the coming days – bills that will address when and how agencies can adopt rules and how to measure the cost of compliance versus perceived benefits. Other regulatory reforms that top the list include tiered enforcement and securing risk-based clean-up standards for industrial sites.
Reconfirming his party’s commitment to letting the temporary sales and income taxes sunset on June 30 as scheduled, Tillis said, “Every dollar spent in the private sector is much more productive than money spent in the public sector.” He also noted that preserving North Carolina’s right-to-work status and our university and community college systems are an important factor to ensuring our competitive edge.
In addition to the above priorities, Senate President Pro Tem Phil Berger (R-Rockingham) recognized that the state’s tax structure must be addressed, though it will follow “right-sizing” state government. “You dealt with the recession two years ago, state government didn’t,” said Berger, who confirmed his support for the expiration of the temporary taxes.
Berger noted that Illinois’s legislature recently raised their corporate tax rate by 67 percent and personal income tax rate by 46 percent, causing an influx of other states trying to lure businesses away from Illinois. But what’s telling, Berger said, is that North Carolina’s corporate tax rate (6.9 percent) is hardly competitive with Illinois’ (7 percent), even with their dramatic hike; in fact North Carolina’s surcharge in place for 2009 and 2010 pushes it higher. (North Carolina’s personal income tax is also higher at 7.75 percent for the top bracket versus Illinois’ 5 percent.)
“You understand that we cannot raise taxes and expect to be competitive,” said Berger.
“Forty-one states face budget challenges, but not all states will make smart choices for the future,” Chamber President and CEO Lew Ebert said, concluding the conference. “All of our priorities are about a full-court press for jobs.”
Other speakers included House Minority Leader Joe Hackney (D-Orange) and Senate Deputy Minority Leader Don Vaughan (D-Guilford). Keynote speaker Stuart Rothenberg, a Washington D.C. political analyst, gave his non-partisan take on the “dramatic elections” of 2010, saying, “It’s about jobs and will continue to be about jobs.”
