Ok, in a few short weeks, Minnesotans and Wisconites will have an answer to the question of which state has the better football team, but the debate over which state has a better jobs and overall business climate is already ongoing.
Credit Minnesota representative Joe Atkins with trying to answer this question definitively. Atkins said the discussion has contained far too much exaggeration on both sides of the border, and he convened a hearing of the House Commerce and Consumer Protection, Finance, and Policy Committee.
The facts are, Minnesota’s jobless rate is 5.3 percent, Wisconsin’s is 7.1 percent (source). Minnesota has more Fortune 500 companies, and more tech companies are moving to the state as well, including on-line photo service, Shutterfly, (source). Minnesota agreed to expand Medicaid expansion and grow the number of people covered by some type of i
nsurance. Wisconsin has not.
Those last two facts are important, given all the hyperbole of business taxes sending jobs and contracts over the St. Croix. Atkins called on Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) to report on the efforts to lure new companies to Minnesota. DEED’s testifiers said they’re busier than ever, and the latest funding measures in education are a great asset to lure out-of-state companies to Minnesota. DEED reports the Minnesota’s upside far outweighs any perceived downside of higher taxes. “Taxes don’t tell the whole story,” DEED reported.
At least Atkins is getting the whole story. If voters are just listening to fear-mongers, they may not.