The subject has come up in the context of what is truly holding back the US economy. We aired various views – from Phil Klein, Joe Klein, Dave Weigel and a small business owner. A reader responds:
I've been a small business owner since 2000. We make good money. My wife manages the office, I bring in and take care of most of the clients. We have 12 employees, full health benefits, etc. I'm moving my shop into a large, multi-city firm because my wife and I are exhausted by the ancillary demands of federal, state and local administrative officials plus the load of actually operations. Here's one example: in Texas, there is a franchise tax on corporations. The statute specifically exempts partnerships made of up natural persons. I didn't pay the franchise tax because my business is a partnership made up of natural persons. I got a bill for 3 years back taxes (in excess of $30,000). I pointed out the statute and declined to pay. The state told me that if I didn't pay, they would freeze all of my bank accounts, which would have the immediate effect of putting us out of business.
I wrote the check. The cost of protesting far exceeds the cost of compliance. Small business clients come to me all the time with stories of government heavy handedness. It isn't fantasy. It's reality. It hits the small operation much harder than mega companies because we can't afford the compliance infrastructure. Did you know this is a daily fact of life for small businesses? Does the president?
More on the data on this topic here.
The Dish 