Dan Coulson, Press Secretary for Citizens for Free Enterprise, has criticized the City of Tempe’s new ordinance requiring businesses to pay an annual tax to obtain a license. Coulson described it as a “power grab” by the city in his statement to the SE Valley Times.
“The Tempe business license scam isn’t just a money grab–it’s a power grab,” said Coulson. “City employees have no business invading the privacy of home-based entrepreneurs. If the City of Tempe is serious about wanting to promote small businesses, they should start by cutting taxes and eliminating onerous, duplicative regulations – not raising and doubling down on them.”
According to the City of Tempe website, the recently passed ordinance mandates that businesses pay an annual tax to acquire a city business license for each location they operate. The ordinance also permits city employees to conduct inspections of businesses, including those based at home, to “ensure compliance.”
Small businesses in Tempe are already required to register with the state before conducting business, as said by the Arizona Corporation Commission.
Tempe News reports that approximately 30,000 businesses currently active in Tempe would be affected by this ordinance.
Neil A. Schneider from Phoenix Business Journal notes that the ordinance lacks guidance and structure regarding which city employees are authorized to conduct inspections or how these inspections should be carried out to “ensure compliance.”
Coulson is identified as Press Secretary for Citizens for Free Enterprise on X.
