St. Charles Collecting Business License Fees It Is Not Authorized To Collect

Posted on by David Stokes

While researching Tax Increment Financing, I visited the St. Charles city website. While there (it is a very good municipal website), I noticed the business license link. So, I clicked on it (as I am want to do) and was greeted with this page:

Business Licenses

Per City Ordinance (Chapter 110), anyone doing business in the City of St. Charles must have a business license issued by the City of St. Charles. This includes:

  • All businesses with a St. Charles address

  • Residents working from their homes

  • Out-of-city businesses such as contractors, sub-contractors, delivery businesses, etc.

  • All professionals

There is just one problem with these statements; they aren’t accurate. First, there are several occupations commonly considered “professionals” that state law specifically excludes from local licensing requirements. Lawyers, CPAs, doctors, dentists, and several other professionals are exempt from local business license fee requirements.

Furthermore, there are other types of “out-of-city” businesses that are exempt from licensing fees unless they fit the first example and have a specific city address. While the examples detailed on the website (contractors, etc.) are correct, other businesses, such as insurance brokers and engineers, are exempt from local licensing unless they have an office in St. Charles.

I bet there are a lot of cities requiring the same thing, and attempt to collect business license fees from firms that don’t know they are exempt. Does the typical land surveyor know he or she is exempt from having a business license? Perhaps. I bet it is less that cities attempt to collect the license fee from exempt businesses as much as they allow people from firms that don’t know better to pay for the license without telling them otherwise.

Is it possible that city officials tell those who are exempt from local licenses that they are so exempt when they arrive to pay for the license? Sure, but that is putting a lot of faith in individual employees to correct the misstatements on the website.  

The city of Saint Louis does a good job of displaying a link to the exemptions on the website of the license collector. St. Charles, and probably many other cities, could stand to take a (web)page from that. I am a big fan of the new mayor of St. Charles. Hopefully, her new administation can correct this soon.

Show-Me Institute Accepting Applications For Winter/Spring Internship Opportunities

Posted on by Show-Me Institute Staff

The Show-Me Institute is pleased to offer internship opportunities for winter/spring 2012.

  • Internships are open to current undergraduate and graduate students, as well as recent graduates.

  • Winter/spring internships will last approximately four months. The exact starting and ending dates are flexible, but we anticipate that each internship will run from January 4 through May 23.

  • Winter/spring interns can work a part- or full-time schedule, 9 a.m.-5 p.m., with attendance strongly suggested at the institute’s book club once a month.

  • Because the Show-Me Institute is a “small shop,” interns will be involved in virtually all aspects of the institute’s operations. Interns work closely with senior staff on a wide variety of projects. They can expect greater responsibility and personal attention than they would receive at larger organizations.

  • Interns will assist staff members with a variety of tasks. These may include researching public policy topics, organizing events, and writing and editing op-eds, newsletters, studies, and other documents. Some administrative and clerical tasks also are required.

  • A Show-Me Institute internship is an excellent opportunity to improve your research and writing skills. Each intern will produce an op-ed on a public policy topic of interest to him or her. Each intern will receive feedback and assistance from the institute’s staff members throughout the process.

  • All internships will occur at the Show-Me Institute’s offices in the Central West End.

  • Interns are paid on an hourly basis.

Those wishing to be considered for an internship should submit the internship application and the requested supporting materials (click on "2012 Winter/Spring Internship Application" at bottom of page).

The deadline for consideration is December 2, 2011. Applicants can expect a decision in mid- to late December.

Where Will Nannies And Chimney Sweeps Sing Songs And Fly Kites If St. Louis County Closes Parks?

Posted on by David Stokes

Saint Louis County Executive Charlie Dooley has proposed cuts to the county park system in response to budget shortfalls. Park advocates are outraged:

“I don’t think it’s up to those guys to make that decision,” said Walter Crawford, executive director of the World Bird Sanctuary, which borders Lone Elk Park. “That park belongs to you and me.”

If it is not up to county officials to determine how to raise and spend tax dollars, whose job is it? Not surprisingly, the hipster urbanists are all a-twitter:

Parks represent a community’s shared aspirations and values. Our St. Louis County Park system is a national treasure.

No, it isn’t. It is a wonderful local park system, but “national treasure” is a fair bit of hyperbole.

I think the real opportunity is for cities to take over some of the parks that are within their borders. Many of the parks in question were county parks before these cities, such as Wildwood, incorporated. County government officials are correct to propose changing that model now. Residents in the newly-formed cities gain the benefits of the local park without the marginal tax burden. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch explains further:

The possible transfers: Lone Elk Park to the Missouri Department of Conservation; Greensfelder to the city of Wildwood; George Winter to Fenton; and Bon Oak to Dellwood.

Officials said that they had not yet contacted the state or municipalities to discuss that prospect.

However, Wildwood Mayor Tim Woerther said on Tuesday that he would be open to the idea of taking over the 1,734-acre Greensfelder.

“We would certainly be receptive,” he said. “But obviously, the devil is in the details.”

I commend Mayor Woerther for his openness to the idea. I would add Tilles Park in Ladue to the list; perhaps the cities of Ladue, Brentwood, and Rock Hill could take over the park in a cost-sharing arrangement. (Tilles is in Ladue, but on the border of Brentwood and Rock Hill, and residents of all three cities use the park extensively.)

Another possibility for some of these parks is to deed them to neighboring subdivisions as common ground. This is an option for the smaller, neighborhood parks on the list, such as Mathilda-Welmering. Maybe they would be well-maintained in that situation and maybe they wouldn’t, but the choice, and cost, would be up to the local residents who use the park. 

And, not surprisingly to regular readers, I think privatization should be considered for some of these parks. The Reason Foundation has covered the issue of park privatization at length. The conservancy model of non-profit public-private partnerships operating a park has been used successfully in some Saint Louis city parks, such as Tower Grove Park. Private supporters also have played a role in the success of some destination parks in the area, including Forest Park and Faust Park. (Nextstl.com has good detail on this in its story.)

The privatization model will, in my opinion, work better for destination parks. But, I think Lone Elk is such a destination park, and because it is one of the parks without a deed restriction on its sale, I hope the county gives that option strong consideration if a private operator can be found to manage it.

I don’t agree with every idea that the county executive proposes here, but I don’t think he deserves the criticism from all sides that he is receiving. Some of these cuts are tough choices that have to be made. I believe that the government is too large and too costly at every level. So, my axiom to that rule is that I don’t criticize elected officials — of either party — when they propose budget cuts, especially in tough economic times. (I think the closest I came to breaking that principle was in defense of Parents As Teachers. But, I only argued against its elimination; I supported cutting its budget.)  

If cities can take control of some of these parks, if privatization (including non-profit control) can be applied to the facilities where it may be best suited, if the more obvious cuts and changes can be applied (like closing minimally-used pools and expensive community centers), then I believe these changes can be implemented and, in the end, most St. Louisans would barely notice.

Digital Learning Day, February 1, 2012

Posted on by The Alliance for Excellent Education

As a state, Missouri has had some forms of digital learning for more than a decade. Rural schools, for example, share courses via interactive television as a way to offer courses (like foreign language and upper level math courses) they otherwise might not be able to offer students.

But there’s much more that can be improved. According to Digital Learning Now’s Report Card for Missouri, state law does not stipulate that student achievement data be used to evaluate the quality of individual online courses, nor does state law require that failing individual course providers be closed.

In this video, Bob Wise, president of the Alliance for Excellent Education, explains how digital learning in the classroom helps students receive more personalized attention and high-quality content.

On Feb. 1, 2012, the Alliance for Excellent Education and its partners host the first-ever national Digital Learning Day. That day will celebrate innovative teaching practices that make learning more personalized and engaging. The learning day also will encourage exploration of how digital learning can provide more students with more opportunities to acquire the skills they need to succeed in college, a career, and life.

Now, Show-Me Your iPhone: SMI Smartphone App Live

Posted on by Patrick Ishmael

Two weeks ago, we debuted Show-Me Daily’s first-ever Android phone app, and today it is my pleasure to introduce Show-Me Daily’s all-new iPhone application for our Apple users. Both platforms have the latest version of our application, including access to Show-Me Daily and YouTube content as well as News — a continuously updated roundup of new Show-Me Institute commentaries and reports — and Show-Me Sunshine’s latest public document postings.

Stay up-to-date on Missouri free-market issues wherever you are, and please contact us — from your phone or on this blog — with your questions and comments.

ip1ip2ip3

What Do Academic Studies Say About Tax Credits?

Posted on by Audrey Spalding

During the recently-completed not-so-special Missouri legislative session, some lawmakers continued to push for a new set of tax credit programs, arguing that tax credits can encourage economic growth.

Today, the Show-Me Institute is releasing a new policy study on the effectiveness of tax credits: “Tax Credits as a Tool of State Economic Development Policy.” This study, by Howard J. Wall, director of the Institute for the Study of Economics and the Environment at Lindenwood University, reviews academic studies of tax credit programs in other states and discusses some of the broad arguments made in favor of tax credits.

One of the most striking findings in Wall’s study is the following: “State tax credits do not tend to lead to higher levels of employment for local residents, nor, by extension, do they lead to higher levels of employment for state residents.”

Consider the academic evidence:

  • There have been three prominent surveys of tax credit research in recent years. None of the surveys concluded that tax credits are an across-the-board, effective tool. In fact, one concluded that legislators should abandon tax credits altogether.

Most academic research on tax credit programs across the U.S. has shown that tax credits don’t work. Why do some legislators think that the situation in Missouri is any different?

Laws of Supply and Demand At Work in Game 7 Ticket Pricing

Posted on by Patrick Ishmael

First, a hearty congratulations to the St. Louis Cardinals. The team’s late-season and post-season play has been the stuff of sports legend, and I’ll be watching the game closely tonight.

If you visited the Cardinals’ official website today to buy tickets, you’ve probably seen this page:

soldout

Now for the good news: Tickets to the game are still available! The bad-ish news? It’s going to be expensive if you want into Busch Stadium tonight. The lowest price going on StubHub right now is $489, for standing room only.

489ticket

The most expensive ticket for the game: more than $12,000. David Stokes, a Show-Me Institute policy analyst, wrote Wednesday about the effect of legalizing scalping on the cost of after-market ticket purchases. From the article he quotes:

The ante rises during the playoffs, when a box seat can fetch more than $1,000 and even the price of standing through a nine-inning ballgame can run as high as $300.

We are well beyond that point today. But simply put, secondary markets – whether on the street or online – usually do a fine job of reducing product inventories by matching willing sellers with willing buyers. Those that value a ticket literally as much as a house payment can buy one; those seeking to unload their ticket can sell it; and those making the market receive their own cut for the service they provide. Everybody wins.

(By the way, originally I was going to write that “thousands of tickets are still available,” but that’s rapidly becoming untrue. During the 20 or so minutes it took to write this post this afternoon, the available number of tickets dropped from approximately 2,100 to 1,800. Prices are high, but they’re obviously not too high.)

This all naturally flows into David’s other post on the World Series regarding parking prices. Websites like StubHub (which is, not surprisingly, owned by eBay) are great because the market is pretty clearly informing what sellers are charging. World Series tickets, while they may have some collectible value after the fact, are ultimately perishable: they’re used for a game, or they’re not. That’s why if you want to go to a regular-season game and don’t mind missing the first inning or two, you can get better deals, as scalpers try to avoid getting stuck with tickets when the music stops. That “wait and buy” opportunity will, for the most part, be non-existent tonight (I think) but the moral of the story is that people place different values on different products, services, and conveniences. Parking lots around the stadium wouldn’t raise their prices if they didn’t think those spaces were valuable to parking customers. World Series ticket prices are very similar in that regard.

In any case, enough economics. Here’s to you, Cards. May the rally squirrel be with you.

What Will The Neighbors Think?

Posted on by Michael Rathbone

Despite the recent adjournment of the Missouri Legislature’s special session (which cost Missouri taxpayers more than $280,000), it wasn’t a complete waste. During the debate about Aerotropolis, the Missouri House passed a corporate income tax cut that lowers the rate from 6.25 percent to 5.5 percent. Unfortunately, the tax cut didn’t become law, but I commend the House for at least trying.

Why is cutting corporate taxes important?

First, everything else being equal, cutting corporate taxes will leave more money available for business owners to reinvest in their companies. A company seeking to expand will have an easier time using its own profits instead of issuing debt or equity to raise capital.

Second, it’s fair.  As we have seen in Missouri, when legislators want to incentivize investment in the state, often they create targeted tax credit programs (like Aerotropolis). This allows the state to place a bet with taxpayers’ money on favored industries. Also, evidence shows that tax credits aren’t very effective. A corporate tax cut applies to every corporation in the state and thus companies can succeed on their own merits and not on how well-connected they happen to be.

Third, corporate tax cuts make a company more competitive. If Company A and B are in two different states and they make the same product at the same cost, but Company A has a higher tax rate than Company B, then Company B will have a competitive advantage. However, Company B would have a competitive advantage not of its own making; instead, the company would have an “artificial” edge due solely to its location. Company B can use that tax advantage to cut its prices and thus gain more customers than Company A.

Having a competitive advantage is important, especially in today’s economy. This applies to individual companies as well as states. If a state wants more job growth, then it needs a competitive tax environment. According to the U.S. Department of Labor (hat tip to Tax Foundation), most mass job relocations occur from one U.S. state to another and not to overseas locations. People in Kirksville, Mo., have more to fear about their jobs moving to Des Moines, Iowa, than to Delhi.

According to data obtained from the Tax Foundation, Missouri has the sixth-highest corporate tax rate compared to its neighbors (the states sharing a border with Missouri). However, if Missouri cut its corporate tax rate to 5.5 percent, it would have THE lowest corporate tax rate compared to its neighbors. In a time when every job is precious, and with the way things are in Washington, D.C., shouldn’t the state do everything it can to make doing business here more attractive?

Job Creation: How it Really Works and Why the Government Doesn’t Understand It

Posted on by Andrew F. Puzder

Tuesday, October 18, 2011, The Show-Me Institute partnered with the John Cook School of Business to present a lecture on the topic of job creation with featured speaker Andrew F Puzder, CEO of CKE Restaurants.

Puzder argued before an engaged crowd that the current regulatory burden and financial uncertainty brought about by recent federal healthcare legislation are precisely the things standing between entrepreneurs across the country and the creation of jobs. Puzder put it quite clearly: Reduce regulations, and watch unemployment fall.

 

Support Us

The work of the Show-Me Institute would not be possible without the generous support of people who are inspired by the vision of liberty and free enterprise. We hope you will join our efforts and become a Show-Me Institute sponsor.

Donate
Man on Horse Charging