A new briefing book on the Upstate economy has been posted on the Public Policy Institute’s blog, www.KnickerbockerBlog.com, as part of the Institute’s ongoing effort to foster dialogue on the problems and solutions for the Upstate economy.

The new briefing book, an electronic presentation that is easily navigable in HTML and also available in PDF format for printing, documents Upstate's slow economic growth and shows that Upstate's rate of manufacturing job loss has been double the national average.

New York City, Long Island, and the city’s northern suburbs grew by .9, 1.0, and 1.2 percent, respectively. Upstate’s total job growth was only .02 percent for the same time period.

“These job losses have impacted Upstate’s population – and the picture is not a pretty one,” the paper says.

The 2000 Census found that Upstate grew more slowly than all but two states, North Dakota and West Virginia, the paper says. And almost a third of the region's "new residents" are prisoners.

To keep up with the pace of job-growth, and compete with neighboring states, Upstate New York needs to be treated separately from Downstate, and lawmakers need to take some action, the paper says.

High energy costs, significant employee benefit costs, and a high state and local tax burden all add to Upstate’s problems, the paper adds.

The paper introduces an “action” plan for Upstate that includes:

• Reminding lawmakers that what works for New York city won’t necessarily work for Upstate New York.
  
  
• Tackling excess costs such as taxes (state, local, and particularly the local property tax) health insurance, workers’ compensation costs, energy costs, and the high cost of regulation.
  
  
• Build on the region's strengths in technology, workforce, and lifestyle.

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