OPINION:
I recently heard that Maryland Delegate Brian Crosby moved his business, Intact Technology, out of Maryland and into Virginia. At first, I was surprised that a public official with such a vested interest in the success of Maryland would do this. However, after reviewing the recent laws enacted in Maryland, the move makes complete sense.
While Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin and his entire team have been hard at work delivering more than $9 billion in tax refunds, streamlining over 81,000 regulatory requirements and attracting businesses to Virginia through historic amounts of site investment, Maryland Democrats have been doing the opposite.
During Maryland’s last legislative session, Democrats raised taxes by $1.6 billion. One of those taxes directly targets tech companies such as Intact through a 3% sales tax. The Maryland Chamber of Commerce estimates that this new policy will impact 99,000 jobs and more than 15,000 employers. It’s no wonder Mr. Crosby moved his business to Virginia.
These policy changes by Maryland are not an outlier; they are part of a pattern. Maryland was already a high-tax state before this latest tax increase. A recent report from the Tax Foundation rated Maryland 46th in terms of tax competitiveness, with only Connecticut, California, New Jersey and New York lagging behind. Even more recently, Maryland had its Moody’s (AAA) bond rating downgraded, while Virginia had ours reaffirmed.
As a successful tech entrepreneur and the secretary of commerce and trade for one of CNBC’s top five states to do business, I would like to offer some free advice to our neighbor up north: Follow Mr. Youngkin’s model. It has taken Virginia to new heights and made us the best place to live, work and raise a family. Just recently, we surpassed our goal of $100 billion in capital expenditure commitments. This is more than our previous two governors combined and a clear sign that Mr. Youngkin’s policies are working.
Maryland should embrace this vision. Start by reducing regulations, cutting taxes and embracing right-to-work policies. For example, one of our agencies, Virginia Energy, has cut more than 50% of its regulatory requirements over the past three years, ushering in a new model for private sector cooperation and innovation. And as a result of our “all of the above” energy plan, our commonwealth is in the lead for welcoming the first commercial small modular reactor, the future of power generation and innovation.
Another piece of advice: Invest in the future of your economy and innovate to compete to win. You can’t tax your way to prosperity. In Virginia, we’ve invested in our workforce housing investment programs, partnered with industry to lower the costs of life-saving pharmaceuticals, created incentives to bring more venture capital to Virginia and invested in our behavioral health system in ways previously thought unimaginable.
A growing economy is the goal. It has to be, because it unlocks so many more tools to help make states like Virginia the best place to live, work and raise a family.
The Youngkin administration will continue doing everything we can to ensure that our commonwealth remains a place where innovation thrives and companies succeed.
And to Delegate Crosby and the rest of the team at Intact Technology, welcome to Virginia!
• Juan Pablo Segura is secretary of commerce and trade for the Commonwealth of Virginia.
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