A new report from New York State’s Comptroller office looked at employment trends from 2009 through 2014 in the Empire State. The report found that New York added 538,000 jobs since 2009.  However, three out of four of these jobs were gained in New York City, while upstate New York struggled.

According to the report, New York’s Southern Tier, Central New York, the Mohawk Valley, and the North Country actually lost a lot of jobs over the five year period.

If Governor Cuomo had actually listened to the science and experts instead of Yoko Ono and the Hulk, New York’s upstate counties would have seen a huge increase in employment with thousands of shovel ready jobs moving into the region. In fact, as Fox News reported, “Cuomo’s decision risks up to 54,000 fracking-related New York jobs — jobs that don’t exist now since fracking is not allowed, but could have been generated with the approval of various projects in the future.”

Across the country, employment in natural resources and mining increased by almost 30 percent, as the report points out:

“Since this industry sector includes oil and gas extraction, the large increase in domestic oil and natural gas production over the past five years contributed to this significant employment growth at the national level.” (Emphasis added Pg. 6)

But because of Governor Cuomo’s ill-advised ban on hydraulic fracturing, New York’s natural resources and mining sector actually lost jobs, as this chart from the report illustrates:

A similar trend was also found when looking at employment opportunities in manufacturing across the country when compared to New York. According to the employment trends report:

“Manufacturing jobs declined by 5 percent in New York over the five years, as compared to growth of almost 3 percent nationally.” (Pg. 7)

Meanwhile, thanks to abundant, affordable energy unlocked through shale development, other states are witnessing a manufacturing renaissance. According to the National Association of Manufactures President and CEO, Jay Timmons:

“America has an unprecedented and incredible global advantage in reliable and affordable energy, and it’s driving manufacturing’s resurgence… shale gas is just one example of an opportunity we shouldn’t miss. If we use this resource right, we can create a million new American jobs over the next 10 to 15 years.”

Unfortunately for New York residents – especially living in the Southern Tier – these energy intensive manufacturing operations are moving to states with more affordable energy sources. States like Ohio have not only seen a huge boom in jobs directly fueled by shale development, they are also reaping the rewards of a growing manufacturing sector.

Governor Cuomo didn’t just kill 54,000 jobs with his ban on hydraulic fracturing; he killed decades of opportunity for those living anywhere besides New York City.