Imagine you live in a home where you can start a business as easy as clicking a button. And not just you, but everyone. Minorities, students, immigrants, women, LGBTQ communities.
Unfortunately every day, I see a world we built by people with money and power. Instead of this beautiful vivid world built by all of us, I see a city that has been envisioned by the few. I want to live in a Charleston that makes it just as easy for anyone to build a life and contribute to the community—a town that everyone can celebrate.
Most often it those of us just starting out as self-employed that could use the most help and grace in those first years. We know most businesses don’t profit in the first three years, so it’s a very important time. There is so much more that could be done to encourage new businesses and assist startups to thrive. When I started my first web-based business in 2015, I was 23 years old fresh out of business school. I began to see revenue and learned I needed to comply with federal, state, and city tax law. I thought I would be welcomed at the Secretary of State’s Office with happy arms and congratulations, but instead I was shoved stacks of paper and told to run across town. They couldn’t even tell me what type of business to write in to categorize our software business.
I was working part-time on Medicaid while testing these waters of entrepreneurship. So you can imagine the stress trying to pinch pennies, and the City, County, State, and Federal government is all asking for money and paperwork. This might all be easier to swallow if these taxes were properly allocated to serving the businesses in the community and helping them succeed, thus creating more revenue for the City and State.
I’d like to reevaluate our City tax law to give grace to Business Registration Fees, City Service Fees, and B&O Tax for startups making under $50,000 gross income. I believe that starting a business could be as easy as pressing a button, and I’d like to get us closer to a world where anyone who wants to start a business, can start a business. The less time a business owner has to spend on compliance, the more time they can spend on creating an inspiring business and creating revenue for our city.
In the age of the gig economy, its even more vital to simplify compliance. Even ride sharing and meal delivery companies require you to file your own income as a contractor with a 1099, meaning they too must pay these City Service Fees and taxes while they are likely not making a significant income. We need to the job market to be sufficient for the new economy as well as level the playing field for minorities and those without bootstraps.