Assemblymember Cahill supported the State Financial Incentive Protection Act, which prohibits companies from receiving financial incentives if they are sending jobs out of the state. It also requires that, if a company has received state economic development funds and then outsourced jobs, it must return any money it received.

Cahill also sponsored a measure that requires New York’s public utilities to provide and keep call centers in the towns they serve, helping to provide local jobs and ensure a timely response (A.201).

In an effort to bring more disclosure and accountability to corporations, Cahill sponsored and supports legislation to:

• Hold companies responsible for economic development incentives they have received (A.11681)
• Require companies to annually disclose any tax credits they have received (A.11703)
• Direct the Department of Labor to examine the effect of offshore outsourcing of information technology jobs (A.11613)

One of the chief complaints about the Empire Zone program – which is designed to give tax breaks to companies that create jobs – is that it lacks accountability. That’s why Cahill supported legislation to reform it and held public hearings on Empire Zones to seek the best way to fix the program.

The Assembly’s legislation – which passed last year – would create an Empire Zone Control Board to oversee the program, (A.9021-A of 2003) and:

• Require comprehensive reports from both the Empire State Development Corp. and state Department of Taxation and Finance so that taxpayers know the true number of jobs created and the true cost of the program
• Designate new zones based on a priority system of economic need
• Decertify businesses that simply reincorporate without adding any new jobs in order to obtain benefits

Cahill is also fighting for additional reforms, including:

• Requiring businesses to pay the median occupational or industrial wage by region in order to be certified
• Barring businesses found in violation of environmental or labor laws from participation in the program
• Mandating that certified businesses must pay for at least 80 percent of an employee’s health benefits

Assemblymember Cahill fought for legislation that would help New York’s working families make ends meet. The bill, recently passed in the Assembly and Senate, will increase the state’s minimum wage to $7.15 (A.11760).

The phase-in legislation will increase the state minimum wage to $6.00 per hour on January 1, 2005; $6.75 per hour on January 1, 2006; and $7.15 per hour on January 1, 2007.

Cahill also supported the New York Fair Pay Act – which ensures that pay differences for both public and private employees are not based on a person’s sex, race, or national origin (A.6701).