Crain’s editors and reporters sat down with gubernatorial hopefuls on issues critical to business and the economy.
Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and Republican challenger Tudor Dixon addressed economic development, fiscal issues, a shortage of hard work, education and a host of issues.
Gretchen Whitmer on Proposition 3, population growth, development
Tudor Dixon on industry incentives, education, taxes, COVID orders
Tudor Dixon said his complaint about state incentives for a Chinese company’s battery parts factory allocation means he opposes the need for the new Michigan fund to land large-scale advertising expansions.
The Republican gubernatorial candidate said the cash passes on to corporations with “proven success” in the U. S. UU or those founded in allied countries. Gotion Inc. , based in China but with a U. S. subsidiary founded in Silicon Valley, will get at least $675 million. in subsidies and tax breaks to build a nearly $2. 4 billion plant and generate up to 2,350 jobs near Big Rapids.
“China is becoming the toughest country in the world, and possibly already is. They have the largest army in the world. They surpassed the United States in terms of exports in 2010. We know exactly where they are going. For them to come to the United States, buy property and give them taxpayer money to do that, it’s very provocative for me,” Dixon told Crain’s in a lengthy interview.
When asked if the state continues with the Strategic Reserve Fund for Awareness and Attraction, which was created about a year ago after Ford Motor Co. Expanding electric vehicle production in southern states, he said: “We have to be competitive with other states. We know that’s what they do. . . I need to make sure the return on investment is solid for the state of Michigan. This goes beyond the SOAR fund. The SOAR Fund is the last step in the process. . . We have a challenge long before we get there. “
The state, he said, does more to prepare shovel-ready sites and increased approval and licensing processes. going through the bureaucracy and giving you an answer in 3 weeks,” he said.
Dixon talked about a combination of problems in Crain’s interview, adding what she called her most sensible business precedence: reducing state regulations by 40 percent in four years. He did not specify which regulations he would abolish, but cited farm regulations as examples of those requiring a full overhaul.
“That’s the No. 1 complaint I hear when I travel around the state, it’s that it’s too hard to get through the bureaucracy. . . start a business, do business, expand the business,” Dixon said.
She said she would put a vocational technical school in each and every top school. He cited his experience in the metal industry, when he struggled to find other people to work in the foundry. Part of the challenge is the belief that jobs on the device department stores and other production services are “dirty,” he said. “But what they’re looking for most is IT skill. I knew that before we started running for governor five years ago, we had a skill problem. That’s anything. ” Michigan hasn’t followed up with other states for the last 30 years, to make sure we’re running toward that core capability of having a professional painting force. “
Dixon’s poor state infrastructure, a low-ranking schooling formula and crime are “big deterrents” to attracting business.
She advocated for “freedom of education,” mentioning expenses that would have created scholarship accounts for K-12 students to pay tuition, adding personal school and tutoring, and giving tax credits to Americans and corporations that donate to the program. Democratic administration Gretchen Whitmer vetoed the legislation, and since then, DeVos’ family circle has financially subsidized nearly the same ballot projects that could pass the legislature in 2023.
“I would like to see savings accounts for education. If parents need to move to another school, they can move on to another school,” Dixon said, referring to Florida, where a voucher program was expanded last year. . ” The concept that you’ll suddenly overload all your public schools would never allow that to happen. . . This is a frightening tactic on the part of the Democrats. But why would we continue on the trajectory we are on?Because right now everything indicates that we will be in the last five states. “
He also called for the statutes to be amended so that the governor, the State Board of Education, appoints the superintendent who oversees the State Department of Education.
When asked how he would have treated the COVID-19 pandemic differently from Whitmer, Dixon supported the initial restrictions on staying in the governor’s space when the coronavirus hit. But he criticized Whitmer’s resolve not to “open” while other states have and said Whitmer later that year deserves not to have closed top schools to in-person instruction, banned closed restaurants and closed various entertainment businesses because of a momentary wave of infections.
“Any general user would know that they probably wouldn’t survive. You can’t do that to a user’s user company. Imagine the government coming in and taking over your business. It’s outrageous,” he said.
Dixon, who said all schools resumed in-person categories in the fall of 2020 (that call was left to the districts), added: “The decisions he made didn’t make sense. When other people ask you what you would do differently, it’s almost like how can I even recognize what he did?It was so catastrophic. I would have seen it from a moderate point of view. . . What he did was an abuse of general power.
Michigan has allocated $117 million of the $409 million allocated to certain types of businesses affected by the closures this year. Dixon earmarked the remaining $300 million into another grant ring to help businesses, which he says are still struggling.
“There’s a cultural surprise in the state of Michigan because of the number of lost businesses and network positions that have disappeared,” he said.
Dixon, who needs to phase out the 4. 25 percent tax on non-public revenue sources within 8 to 10 years, said the move would be “a tie. People must remain their own money. It must remain their source of income. “I think it attracted other people to the state, we can also build the economic progress of the state. »
He said the loss of profits ($12 billion, or more than a third of the school and general aid budget) would be “enormous” and did not specify what spending he would cut. “It’s anything we want to see,” he said. When asked about raising other taxes to offset the tax implications, he said, “This would be anything the electorate would vote for,” apparently referring to the 6% increase in sales tax. right now. “
In July, a ruling was passed on the declaration of unconstitutionality of a 2018 Republican maneuver aimed at weakening voter-proposed minimum wage increases and paid leave needs for health problems to make them more business-friendly, saying the initial bills will take effect in February. Dixon said “this has to be something we can deal with quickly. “The minimum wage for tipped workers, ultimately $3. 75 consistent with the hour before tips are included, will increase to $9. 60 unless there is judicial or legislative intervention. “We’re going to lose other people because they earn so much more from tip credits than from minimum wage,” he said, adding that he hadn’t explored the factor in detail.
Dixon said investment in roads deserves to be consistent with priority in the budget, but did not detail what he might cut to transfer more cash to infrastructure. He opposed raising fuel taxes or vehicle registration fees. He said he would explore alternative financing models such as charging other people according to public-private partnerships or mile traveled, as the fuel tax is not a sustainable long-term option with the advent of electric vehicles.
He said he engaged in an “unintended consequence” of the 2019 auto insurance review, parts of which were declared unconstitutional by a judge. “I think we are seriously threatened with wasting some of our rehabilitation facilities,” he said, referring to sharp cuts in reimbursement rates for the care of other injured people before the law went into effect. She did not call for an express legislative solution, but pointed to a recently announced increase in rates for drivers from the Michigan Catastrophic Claims Association. The right answer, but I think we want to see what’s going on with the lawsuit before we make any decision from the state government,” he said.
Dixon, who opposes abortion, said that if the electorate doesn’t approve Proposition 3’s abortion rights initiative, legal experts have told her they expect the Michigan Supreme Court to uphold reduced court rulings blocking enforcement of a 1931 abortion ban that’s in place after Roe v. Roe v. Wade. It was annulled. Wade. ” If the 1931 Act is the law on the books, I will accept it. If Proposition 3 passes, I will pass it because that’s my job as governor,” she said. Pressed on whether the ban deserves to be replaced if the courts allowed enforcement, saying: “It’s not my decision. You have to ask the legislators. “
Dixon supported Whitmer’s efforts to reopen the Palisades closed nuclear power plant in southwest Michigan. He said there may also be opportunities to install “micronuclear” reactors.
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