Monday, June 20, 2011

Tax Cuts Still Not Enough for Business?

Apparently, a $1.7 billion tax cut for business isn't enough. Michigan "stinks" as a place to do business.

That's according to the Detroit Free Press on Sunday.

The newspaper says Michigan needs to be "more hospitable" to business.

What exactly does that mean? The columnist doesn't say. Should we assume he means right-to-work-for-less legislation? Does he mean ending all regulation of business? Getting rid of worker-safety requirements?

The article mentions Michigan's strong public universities as attractive to business, but Rick Snyder and the Republicans have already slashed funding to those institutions. Tuition increases to replace some of the lost state funds will make it harder for many students to attend and graduate, giving the state a smaller pool of college grads available for hiring. Is that attractive to business?

A little more specficity would be nice, but the columnist's problem may be that he won't know what it is that makes Michigan a better place to do business until Snyder tells him. You can bet whatever Snyder proposes that he claims will make Michigan's business climate more "hospitable" is what the columnist will support. That's one of the problems with business columnists. They end up as cheerleaders for whatever business leaders demand.

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