You may have heard that North Carolina was once again ranked as the best state in the nation to do business—a distinction we’ve won for a few years now, thanks in large part to a track record of strong investment in smart infrastructure and quality education. But this isn’t a distinction we earned overnight. In fact, it took decades of choosing to invest in our state to get here—in many ways, this honor belongs to visionaries like Terry Sanford and Jim Hunt just as much as it belongs to those of us in state government today.
Employers have a lot of considerations when they choose to open for business in a new state, but probably the biggest consideration is opportunity—whether or not they can see a future for themselves and their employees there. Things like the corporate tax rate certainly factor in, but they’re also looking at a lot of other metrics: are there good highways and rails so they can easily move goods? Will it be easy for employees to commute to work on the transportation network? Is the school system good enough that existing employees will feel like they’re moving to somewhere where they can raise a family?
When we attract new companies, we’re coasting on that decades-long record, but we can’t coast forever, John. Right now, NCDOT’s funding has never been in a more precarious position, with major infrastructure projects being pushed out years and years into the future. Right now, the NCGOP is waging an all-out war on our public education system, slashing teacher pay and funneling money away from public schools toward private institutions. It’s reducing our capacity to create opportunity for our people, and over time, it will scare businesses away.
I could call that a lot of things, but most of all, it’s short-sighted. It’s a failure to plan for the long-term—because success is only sustainable if you look ahead, plan for the future, and invest beyond tomorrow.
Once upon a time, companies like Sears and Blockbuster dominated our commercial landscape—growing up in Statesville, Sears was the big anchor at the Signal Hill Mall, and it’s where we went for everything from new furniture and appliances to where I bought Mortal Kombat III (some of you are going to read that and think it makes me sound really young, and some of you are going to read that and think it makes me sound super old. #NinetiesKidProblems).
Nowadays, Sears is as dead as the Hills that was in that location before it, and you’d be hard pressed to find a Blockbuster in operation just about anywhere. These companies were titans of their industries, but they failed to plan for the future. They failed to adapt. They cut costs and cut investment in their own success. When the landscape changed and things like malls and mail-order catalogs and DVDs ceased to be relevant, the bottom fell out from under them. And if we’re not careful, our state could fritter away its economic success in basically the same way.
But we have a choice. We stand at a crossroads, and it’s not too late to change course. And it can start with the Treasurer’s office—with this campaign. We can show North Carolinians what happens when our government is willing to invest in our success, and we can use that as a springboard to ensure that our state doesn’t go the way of Sears and Blockbuster. But it’ll take all of us, standing together and choosing change.
So, John, I’m asking you to make an investment in this campaign. I’m asking you to make an investment in changing our state for the better, in unlocking our potential, and in looking past tomorrow to really invest in our future. Any amount you can give helps, so can I count you in?
