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Ridgefield Rep. John Frey Says State's Tax Policy Hurts Businesses

RIDGEFIELD, Conn. -- The Ridgefield Daily Voice accepts signed letters to the editor. Please send letters to ridgefield@dailyvoice.com. 

To the editor:

As many of you may have heard, General Electric announced the Fairfield-headquartered company has put together an exploratory team to review its options to relocate out of Connecticut in the wake of the passage of the Democratic state budget.

GE employees roughly 6,000 people in our state. If the company moves, the loss to Connecticut would be far greater than just those careers. The corporate giant has business relationships with hundreds of other companies in the state and it would cost Connecticut hundreds of millions over time in sacrificed tax revenues.

It’s clear numerous additional companies in Connecticut are currently mulling the same question -- stay here as the ship sinks or leave for greener pastures? Greener pastures may mean the absence of, or a decreased unitary tax - a particularly onerous tax that will require GE and other companies to pay for revenue they make out of state. For example, sales from GE subsidiaries in Ohio or Texas, would now be subject to Connecticut taxes, simply because GE is headquartered here.

When added to reduced revenue, aggressive competitors, and shifting markets, unitary taxes can strike hard blows to corporations — many of who are still trying to stay afloat in the wake of the recent recession.

The thing is, there are states that do not have a unitary tax or require combined reporting. The reality: Connecticut has to compete in a global economy for jobs and revenue sources. Our state has to offer comfortable climates for businesses so that they can conduct their operations here.

This is not a good time for Connecticut to increase taxes on its largest employers.

They will leave.

They will take their jobs and revenue with them to greener pastures. Whether or not you think it’s fair, the reality is that the Connecticut ship will sink.

The budget, which will increase taxes across the board in Connecticut, is currently in Gov. Dannell Malloy’s hands. Call his office and let him know your opinion at 860-566-4840

State Rep. John Frey

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