Mission Viejo has always been proud of its business-friendly policy of not requiring business registration or licensing. Mayor Ury summarized that feeling at the last council meeting while talking about the opening of Farrell’s and Microsoft at the Mall. He stated, “And we’re very excited in Mission Viejo that we have no business license – another way we differentiate from our brethren around us.”
That could change based on an agenda item next Monday intiated by Lance MacLean. He raised the issue in September when he seized upon a verbal report by the City Attorney regarding problems with medical marijuana dispensaries in other cities. MacLean posed this question: “Would it be of any assistance to have business registration so we know who is here, what their business is, where located?”
Curley replied that the potential information gathered from business registration could provide other information for City Hall, unrelated to marijuana. “You may be onto a goldmine,” he patronizingly told MacLean. MacLean quickly pounced, “Can I get staff to do a report [regarding the cost of implementing registration]?” He indicated he was contemplating registration, not a tax, but the Councilman has consistently exhibited a big governmentn mentality, and registration opens the door to interfering with businesses by imposing more red tape, regulation and fees.
Business registration is an old idea that has outlived it usefulness unless intended as a revenue device. Its value for so-called “economic development” has virtually dissipated in the modern world of more reliable computerized and internet databases available from multiple providers.
The agenda report says the item is being brought Monday because:
At the September 21, 2009 meeting, in conjunction with the City Attorney’s report on marijuana dispensaries in adjacent communities, the City Council directed staff to explore the potential, including the cost, of implementing a business registration program in Mission Viejo.
The statement is false. Only MacLean made the request, without discussion or vote by other council members, and the subject of registration/licensing doesn’t even appear in the official minutes of the meeting.
After surveying other cities, staff found there are many variations of business license and registration policies and ordinances. Regarding licenses, the report states:
Typically a business license is required by all businesses and individuals conducting work in the City, including contractors and others working on a temporary basis. The application fee for a business license varies from city to city, but can range from about $50 for a contractor to much higher ($1500 to $2500) for a major retailer.
If business registration took the short evolutionary step to taxes and licensing, it could include costs on home-based businesses, laborers, independent contractors, work-at-home residents, and all income-generating endeavors in the City. The information is public information and can become a data base mined by solicitors and snoops.
The report reveals some semantic caveats:
Business registration tends to be a less stringent version of the business license and seems to have the primary purpose of economic development and keeping track of businesses. However, the business registration program in Fullerton is for revenue generation and not economic development, and it is more similar in nature to a business license program.
The marijuana rationale is deceptive because broad-based registration is not required to contain marijuana dispensaries. Mission Viejo has a moratorium in effect prohibiting new dispensaries. Other cities are proposing permanent ordinances banning dispensaries based on federal law. Curley says the City is watching current court cases in preparing its next steps.
Even where registration is used, it doesn’t have to apply to other businesses. A proposed marijuana ordinance prepared by the City Attorney in Los Angeles would create a registration process uniquely for dispensaries. Other cities limit registration to certain categories of enterprise. So why is the MV Council’s biggest spender and tax proponent using marijuana as justification for a broad government regulation against business?
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This, in itself, would be enough to justify a recall (of MacLean). Mayor Ury has it exactly correct: MV should be proud of not forcing businesses to register. The more government intervention (regulations and taxes), the fewer jobs. And these days, with all the current and impending burdens on employers coming from D.C. and Sacramento, the last thing we need is to add to them.
Councilman MacLean appears to be following the political dictates of Rahm Emanuel, who reportedly said “Never let a good crisis go to waste” (because it gives politicians the opportunity to expand their power over the citizenry). Worse yet, this particular “crisis” appears to be one of MacLean’s own manufacture.