As a share of population, New York said goodbye to more residents in the past decade than any other state. According to a stunning report by the Empire Center, a project by the Manhattan Research Institute, more than 1.6 million New Yorkers moved out of state between 2000 and 2010.

The research, based on data from the latest U.S. census, showed that for the second consecutive decade, New York was the country’s favorite place to leave. Moreover, the inflow of immigrants to New York, which has traditionally been strong enough to offset the loss of population, has fallen sharply as well.

So, not only are more people leaving New York, but fewer are coming. Why?

The exodus is “the ultimate barometer of New York’s attractiveness as a place to work, live and do business,” said E.J. McMahon, the report’s author. “It’s the ultimate indication that what we’ve been doing is wrong.”

Indeed. And it explodes the notion that New York can retain its global prominence, or even its regional competitiveness, without making serious changes in public policy.

Consider data from the non-profit Tax Foundation. The organization ranks New York dead last in the country for its high taxes. And according to its research, more than 1.5 million taxpayers left the state between 2000 and 2008 (the last year for which they have figures). They took with them nearly 3 million exemptions — most likely their dependent spouses and children — as well as $97 billion in adjusted gross income.

Think about that — $97 billion in spendable, investable, taxable income. Gone. Much of it now circulates in the Florida economy, where there is no income tax, and it is no doubt behind that state’s explosive economic growth…..

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