State Treasurer Richard Moore and BB&T Chairman and CEO John Allison touted lower business taxes to improve North Carolina’s competitive position and create jobs in our state. 

In a televised interview with News 14 Carolina, Treasurer Moore said that he has been talking about eliminating the corporate income tax for years. “It would be a wonderful thing to say to businesses around the world,” he said. “Come to North Carolina, grow your business, we’re not going to tax you." 

When asked whether our state’s tax climate needs to be addressed because it is viewed unfavorably compared to other Southeastern states, Moore said, “Of course, you can never be satisfied with where you are. You always want to charge as little as possible.” He added, “I actually think that North Carolina’s corporate income tax is an outlier. I think it’s too high. I think we need to look at reducing it, but whenever you talk about reducing a specific tax you need to look at the total pie.”

North Carolina and Winston-Salem fare well in a Forbes magazine study that focuses on the best 200 communities for businesses and careers. 

The magazine ranked five metropolitan statistical areas in North Carolina among the top 25, led by Raleigh-Cary at No. 1. Raleigh-Cary was the national runner-up the past three years. 

Durham was ranked seventh, Charlotte-Gastonia-Salisbury was 21st, Asheville was 23rd and Winston-Salem was 24th. The Greensboro-High Point MSA was ranked 61st overall. 

The state’s influence was felt even more in one of the three major individual categories — the cost of doing business — in which six metros ranked in the top 10, led by Greensboro-High Point at No. 1, the cheapest. Wilmington was ranked second, Hickory was fourth, Fayetteville was fifth, Winston-Salem was seventh and Asheville was 10th. 

The magazine’s study emphasizes labor, utilities, taxes and office space in measuring the cost of doing business. The other major categories are job growth over a five-year period and percentage of educational attainment of at least a college degree. 

SDLqForbes’ rankings help to validate what we say daily to businesses looking at North Carolina for expansion or relocation,” Bob Leak Jr., the president of Winston-Salem Business Inc., said yesterday. “It says we’re competitive in the categories that companies and site selectors say matter the most to them.” 

According to the Forbes article accompanying the rankings, “When it comes to the best place to do business or start a career, the clear winner this year is North Carolina.” 

“Raleigh’s economy has expanded 6 percent annually over the past three years. Helping to fuel this growth are business costs that are 13 percent below the national average and a labor force where 38 percent have a college degree — the 12th-highest percentage in the country.”