Okay, you want examples. Here are a few things I’ve had to deal with:
- The State of California arbitrarily decided that all businesses that gross over $100,000/year should have an account where you have to report quarterly on the sales tax your customers pay you for goods sold. The only problem? My company only sold services–not products–which aren’t taxed in California. When I closed the account (by going into a local office and spending nearly an hour explaining my situation), they forced it open again and sent me a nastygram explaining that I would owe fines for not filing the quarterly report. You have to file it 4 times a year, and it takes time to fill out, even if you haven’t sold any products and owe the state nothing.
- The state charges an income tax of 10% on all income over $47,055. This is in addition to the Federal income tax of 25% on income over $34,001. This is also in addition to an 8.25-9.25% sales tax (depending on where you buy products.) I paid enough in income tax for 2010 to the state of California alone to hire another new worker for my business. I’d bet a lot of money that I’m far more efficient at creating jobs as a small business owner than the state is given the same amount of money. I’d rather have that money to hire someone.
- And a really dumb law for small business owners, which Meg Whitman promised to repeal: An annual fee of $800 just to have a corporation in the state of California. (Most states don’t charge you, or only charge you a few dollars, as an annual fee to set up a business. California’s is exorbitant, and it applies as long as you, the primary officer of the corporation, live in California…no matter where you incorporate.)
The Final Straw
But the final straw came recently. I had an inkling that if California voters elected Jerry Brown that I’d end up leaving the state. I campaigned hard for Meg Whitman, as she is extremely supportive of small businesses like mine. Alas, she didn’t win, and California elected a governor for another term who was a ridiculously weak governor in his first term.
And he managed to royally screw things up for small businesses again. Here’s what happened: I have a side income selling products on Amazon. Recently, I’ve invested far more time and money in building niche sites to help bolster my Amazon side income. It’s steadily gone up, from a few hundred dollars a year to what will amount to a few thousand dollars this year. Sure, it’s not a ton of money, but I get the payments in Amazon credit and use them to buy many everyday items.
And then Jerry Brown, our idiot governor, signed a budget that included what many have come to call an “Amazon tax”. Basically, the law says that if Amazon has affiliates (people like me who drive traffic to Amazon in exchange for a cut of sales made from people who click through our links), that Amazon has a “presence” in the state of California–and therefore must collect sales tax here. (Kind of like forcing small businesses to file ridiculous quarterly paperwork based solely on our earnings, not on whether we actually sell taxable goods…)
Amazon made the right decision: Instead of kowtowing to California, they immediately cut off all affiliates here in the state.
And that day, I decided to move. It was a “straw that broke the camel’s back” sort of thing.
Good for you Curt. I live here in CA and am trying to leave also. I was born and raised here for 56 years, but this is not the state I remember. There are too many illegals and liberals for me. Brown is working to destroy what is left of this great state. Where are you going by the way, Texas? Good luck to you.
CURT, hi,
the fact is that you are telling the truth, and exposing their way of sucking the money any way they can,
and the consequence of those action, they haven’t thought of is they will miss the one small busyness people who are feeding them to support their bad judgment on decisions to hit those group which are not the one to be hit,
BROWN SHOULD LOOK AT THE ILLEGALS WHICH ARE THE ONE SUCKING THE SYSTEM AND ALSO THROWING THEIR WEIGHT ON THE AMERICAN CITIZEN BY PUSHING THEM OUT OF THAT STATE,
AND LOOK WHAT WILL BE LEFT THERE, THE UMONGEST PROBLEM THEY ALLOW TO GROW THE
THAT WILL BE A MAJORITY OF NON TAX PAYERS MARCHING ON TO DESTROY THEM AT THE END
THAT’S WHAT THE FOOLS WILL END UP WITH,
One thing I found out about California is at one time they were saying they were going to tax the airspace above that state for parking satellites then the cable companies said not to worry there was still fuel aboard and they would stear clear in the sky. The Idea was immediately dropped.
That state is good at doing one thing; ripping people off.
Sorry Curt…
@Bees – I wish they (Gov’t) would kill off the “bird feeder” like they think killing off Business and Productive Citizens (as opposed to moochers) is a smart move. Gee, where ‘will’ they get their Money when the well dries up and all the businesses move out? I suppose they always have the Movie Stars in Hollywood that can contribute “their Fair Share” and pick up the lost support dollars of small businesses and businesses who are ‘fed up’ with being ripped off and moving out.. When California goes broke I do not want our tax dollars bailing them out!
FAITH7, HI,
yes how come they don’t deal with what cause the problem,
they surely could find some cutting in that range of people ,
because their is always some who abuse the system,
that should not be a problem to find them and retrieve their money,that would solve a big part
of added funds, that is acquired underground, with many tools they have found even more than the other citizens, because the citizens don’t know that and the way to lie and acquire false identification some might belong to many with the same id, imagine collecting a multiple of welfare checks, or collecting for a multiple number of children that don’t exist, and more of. and also, they are too secure and comfortable with that kind of gimmy, they should be made to earn it in some way the GOVERNMENT COULD THINK INSTEAD OF HIRING UNION GUYS for some jobs, they can make the recipients earn their money, that would give them incentive to get out of charity, and save the expanses on the government.
their easy way, no problem is to hit the working businesses, which otherwise would be willing to hire more employees,and I feel that all citizen should chip in, and the welfare checks should
have the tax deducted too, they would survive just the same because their amount is already generous if they compare with their own country where it’s none,
bye
@Susan: Same here, cost of living is almost unaffordable.