McCrory gets it. Brown doesn't.

Editorial by Burlington Times-News, July 23, 2015.

Gov. Pat McCrory gets it. State Sen. Harry Brown doesn’t.

That is the most visible takeaway we have of the suddenly bitter dispute between the Republican governor and Republican Senate majority leader — one that flared up over a proposal in the state Senate budget that would redistribute sales taxes from places where they’re actually generated to places where they aren’t.

Most cities in North Carolina — and some heavy tourism areas — are vehemently opposed to it. Who can blame them with millions of dollars generated in their communities on the line, opportunities created by taxpayers who funded the infrastructure to make it happen.

McCrory, a former mayor of Charlotte, understands this all too well. He’s calling the legislation the “Tax Increase, Redistribution and Spending Act.” It’s a designation that likely chafes Brown, a Jacksonville car dealer who represents Onslow County and very rural Jones County in eastern North Carolina.

The simmering feud bubbled over this week after Brown, author of the tax redistribution plan and its largest visible supporter, held a rally of leaders from 40 rural communities in support of the proposal that would allocate sales tax money based on population instead of where the sales occur.

It didn’t take long for Brown’s party to clear the dance floor before McCrory issued a strongly worded news release vowing to veto the proposal if it crosses his desk. Going a step further, McCrory said he would veto any state budget that had this measure in it. It’s new territory for McCrory. He hadn’t promised to veto a proposal before it passed both the House and Senate until now.

“This bill will result in a tax increase for millions of hardworking middle-class families and small business owners throughout North Carolina,” McCrory said. “Redistribution and hidden tax increases are liberal tax-and-spend principles of the past that simply don’t work. More importantly, this bill will cripple the economic and trade centers of our state that power our economy.”

We agree with McCrory’s assessment. Our area would stand to lose a substantial amount of money based on sales taxes generated from the Alamance Crossing-University Commons Burlington hub and the sprawling Tanger Outlets in Mebane. All of those projects took long-term commitment and investment by those cities and, importantly, taxpayers in those cities. Communities that take risks earn the reward.

Brown’s response: “I can’t figure out if Pat thinks he is the governor of Charlotte or the mayor of North Carolina.”  Brown’s argument is that his measure would restore tax fairness to rural counties without the ability to do so on their own, and close a divide between rural and urban areas. While Brown has a point, taking away revenue from areas that created economic opportunities at no small expense to give it to another that has invested nothing  is patently wrong.

McCrory offered his N.C. Competes jobs program as an alternative, and that’s a good place to start. The House has already passed the plan, but it has yet to clear the Senate. It’s a proposal that would target job creation in travel, tourism and agriculture across the state.

The tax redistribution proposal has Republicans besides the governor and Senate majority leader at odds. There is GOP opposition to it, particularly in the state House.

We hope those against this plan will stick to their principles. The state should be rewarding communities taking the initiative to encourage business growth, not discouraging them.

http://www.thetimesnews.com/article/20150723/OPINION/150729500/15233/OPINION/?Start=2