Legislation out of Washington can have a profound effect on businesses large and small. Despite the high profile of federal initiatives though, municipal ordinances very often have a more immediate impact on profits. Business owners need to cultivate productive relationships with town officials to promote “business-friendly” regulations.
It’s a Presidential election year, and everyone’s mind is on the November ballot box. What’s going to happen in Washington, and how will that affect the business operating environment? While federal laws and regulations are important, experts caution against getting distracted from events closer to home. Profits, after all, are more often affected by ordinances passed in the town hall than by what comes out of the White House and the United States Capitol.
“National politics tend to get all the headlines,” says Cliff Ennico, an attorney who counsels on business matters. “But the fact of the matter is that the vast majority of political decisions that affect businesses are local in nature.”
Municipal ordinances can touch business operations in a remarkable number of ways. A partial list includes taxation, business licensing, zoning laws, street and traffic patterns, parking regulations, building design and signage, environmental and health regulations and even the installation of unsightly utility poles and cell phone towers.
And that’s not all. “Local governments have been expanding their role into employee benefits and rights,” says Marc H. Pfeiffer, Assistant Director at the Bloustein Local Government Research Center. “In many cases, cities are establishing minimum wages.”
