Florida touts its low-tax state business climate as a major draw to attract new companies, but according to just released report, small businesses care far less about taxes than over-regulation and licensing rules.
As reported in The Economist, Thumbtack, a website that matches customers to businesses, and the Kauffman Foundation, a think-tank, asks thousands of small businesses annually about local requirements for hiring, regulations, zoning, licences, health insurance and training. The group compiled “business climate” grades for 38 states and 82 cities.
In terms of overall friendliness to small business, Florida gets a lowly C+, and fares no better than Mississippi, North Carolina or Oregon, as new firms must jump through hoops, this notwithstanding the state low-tax status. It’s licensing rules serve as a major drag and Florida scores a mere 44% on this measure. In comparison, low-tax Texas scores very well with an overall A+ rating, suggesting that
Meanwhile, high-tax states like California and Illinois get failing grades, ‘Fs’.
The authors of the report conclude that, although states and cities have traditionally tried to attract businesses by offering them tax breaks, one thing that surely works is: make life simpler.
So much for Gov. Rick Scott and Republican policies that focus on tax breaks and other cash incentives – they don’t really matter.
