With the state's unemployment rate hovering dangerously close to 10 percent, and over 300,000 residents without a job, Massachusetts could use a plan for jump-starting the economy and getting people back to work. Unfortunately, you'd be hard-pressed to find any significant jobs creation plan coming from Gov. Deval Patrick or the Legislature.

Sadly, the state's record on jobs creation over the past three years has been a colossal failure as the Patrick administration has pursued a discredited policy of picking winners and losers within the business community.

What the governor should be doing is pursuing a statewide economic development plan that will assist all employers, promoting the type of jobs creation the commonwealth so desperately needs.

Rather than trying to help all businesses, the governor has instead embraced tax credits for certain select companies in the life sciences, environmental and film industries — with taxpayers seeing little return for their investment.

Evergreen Solar is a classic example. The company, which manufactures the silicon wafers and cells used in solar panels, received $58.6 million in taxpayer-subsidized assistance to open its new factory at Devens last year. Yet after posting $167 million in losses through the first three quarters of 2009, Evergreen announced on Nov. 4 that it would be shifting its solar panel assembly work to China.

Massachusetts is home to many world-class colleges and universities, whose promise of a quality education allows us to attract many young and talented people from across the country and around the globe.

The problem is, the state's high costs (unemployment insurance, workers compensation, electric and water rates) and anti-business policies ultimately drive these individuals away. Small start-ups that are incubated at local universities may launch here, but when it comes time to grow they are moving to the Carolinas, to California, even to New Hampshire and Rhode Island.

In addition, many state regulations are passed without any consideration given to how they might impact businesses.

Business likes consistency, yet the state has changed the corporate tax code three times in the past decade alone, with the most recent changes saddling businesses with an additional half-billion dollars a year in taxes.

Employers see more changes on the horizon with the global warming bill being implemented and health care costs skyrocketing. They will not expand here or grow jobs here if they cannot plan for the long-term.

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Richard R. Tisei, R-Wakefield, is the Minority Leader of the Massachusetts State Senate.