In 2013, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo initiated Start-Up NY -- a much ballyhooed program granting private businesses tax-free status-- with the promise that it would "supercharge" the state's economy and create thousands of new jobs. Nevertheless, despite many millions of dollars of taxpayers' money spent on the program, it created only 76 jobs during the following year. Using public funds to rehire the thousands of teachers laid off thanks to severe cutbacks in state funding for education would be a much better investment.