Published by Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin | Written by Martin Babinec

Years ago, my wife, Krista, and I moved back to Little Falls from Silicon Valley because we wanted to raise our family in upstate New York, where we grew up. It was the best decision we ever made.

But today, we face the dilemma that so many other families face: Will our children have to move away to make a living and pursue their dreams?

The most important issue facing the 22nd District and all of upstate New York is how do we create a future of opportunity so that more of our Sunday dinners can be face-to-face instead of FaceTime? That is why I am running for Congress.

When my wife and I started our company, TriNet, in 1988, it wouldn’t have happened here; it could have only happened in Silicon Valley. It wasn’t because taxes are less in California; they are actually higher. It wasn’t because the regulatory environment was easy to navigate; it’s actually a bigger bureaucratic nightmare than New York. And finally, it wasn’t because there are more talented, hard-working people in San Leandro then there are in Binghamton or Owego. We have all of that here.

What we are lacking is supportive infrastructure of entrepreneurs and resources to leverage the incredible talent in our neighbor’s garage, the university labs and the new fledgling startups.

Lowering our tax rates, simplifying our tax code, reducing regulations, unburdening the entrepreneur of health care costs, getting fair trade deals, improving broadband access — these are important issues that I am committed to address, and as an independent candidate who is not taking a penny of special-interest money, I will be in a unique position to bring people together in Washington around solutions.

But let me be clear: It’s time we take matters into our own hands. We can’t rely on Washington and Albany to save our future. We can grow jobs, we can succeed today despite the obstacles that exist, but only if we reject the tired crony capitalism that has failed upstate for a generation. Throwing our taxpayer dollars at the politically connected, asking the government to pick winners and losers is ethically, morally and economically misguided and lazy. It has to stop.

The politicians’ emphasis on business attraction is a proven loser. Instead, we should start investing, guiding, nurturing, mentoring and connecting our home-grown businesses. That is what helped me turn TriNet from an idea at our kitchen table to a $2 billion company, and that is why I have spent the past six years dedicating my time and energy to my nonprofit Upstate Venture Connect.

In Congress, I will convene the resources of our human capital, our colleges and universities, with our research assets, private-sector leaders and entrepreneurial network to create lasting jobs and companies in new industries, in future industries. That’s not some pipe dream; it’s actually returning to our roots, when great New York minds like Edison and Watson made great lasting companies like IBM and GE.

With the right leadership and ideas, we can restore our future and we can add those extra chairs back around the Sunday dinner table.

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NEXT -> Martin Babinec’s mission as a Job Creator, Independent Candidate for Congress and Entrepreneur is to keep families together in Upstate New York by creating more jobs and innovation companies our best and brightest talent are interested in so they don’t need to move elsewhere in pursuit of these opportunities. Learn more about how he plans to tackle this by reading the details of the Babinec JOBS Effect Plan.