Local licensing fees get easier, but do not become fewer

Operating a business involves providing a service to customers and keeping ahead of the stacks of paperwork required by law to operate. Sometimes this involves a simple business license as a stay-at-home content creator, other times it involves filling out licenses taxes for every city and county a company does business across all of South Carolina.The Post and Courier reports on the latest legislation to help lighten the load of business licenses and accounting.

Centralizing licensing taxes

South Carolina is simplifying a variety of taxes charged from many sources across 234 cities and towns and nine counties. Since every city has its own requirements for licensing, they each require filling out separate forms with different rates at different times in the year.Keeping everything straight, as one pest control business owner remarks, is ridiculous on account of their business needing 66 business licenses to operate across South Carolina.The bill is not in effect until 2022, but will create a state-operated website that consolidates any licensing taxes into a single form in one bill at the same time.One of the compromises includes rates remaining in local governments’ hands.

Keeping it all together

With all these licensing worries, starting a business can be as excruciating as it is exciting. Once a business has all of its licensing nailed down, this legislature may help the accounting side of things. But every business still requires a lot of planning and forethought when forming at the start.There are resources for all determined entrepreneurs that can help them navigate the many avenues involved with licensing, operating and even selling a business across multiple cities and counties.