January and February are some of the most stressful times for small business owners. It’s tax time and they have to spend hundreds of dollars paying tax professionals to file their business tax return, not to mention the countless hours taken away from their core business preparing the documents needed to file.
What most WJCC residents don’t realize is that every single business in the city and county pay what is called “Business License Tax“. How bad could this be you may ask? It’s just a fee for having a business in the county or city right? Yes, that’s exactly what it is. A fee for simply running a business. What most people don’t realize however, is that the amount you pay in business license tax each March 1st is directly tied to your chosen industry and how much money your business lists in its gross receipts each year. Want to know how many taxes you are subjected to as a small business? Just visit the Williamsburg City web site and find out just how onerous the process can be.
WHAT THIS MEANS TO ME? Every single resident of Williamsburg and James City County is paying more for everything they buy as a result of the government’s over reach into the pockets of small business owners.
As an example, say you are a small professional office with $150,000 in annual sales for your service. You would owe James City County over $500 simply because you made money by doing business in their county. Then let’s say you had two computers, several desks, printers, coffee maker, conference room table, refrigerator and floor lamps. The county charges you an additional tax on those business personal property items each year, so you have to send them more money twice a year, along with the business license tax on your gross sales. But the term “gross sales” is misleading. Here’s another example:
I’m a beauty salon owner. I buy products for my customers and sell the at cost as a show of good faith to my loyal clients. The county requires me to put the full sales value of the products as part of my “gross receipts” for business license tax purposes. Meaning, even though I didn’t see a dime in income from the sale of the product, I have to report it as part of my yearly sales and will be taxed accordingly. And on top of that I have to collect and remit additional sales tax (including the extra 1% TOMMY TAX) to fatten up local government coffers. Why aren’t business owners revolting in the streets?
Other taxes that business are required to pay include payroll taxes (FICA Social Security, state and federal taxes). What most people who receive a paycheck from any business don’t realize is that if $300 is withheld from your paycheck to sent to social security, medicare, federal and state income tax, your employer has to match the amount and remit the same amount on your behalf to those entities! So when you see your check and think “I can’t believe I have to pay this much each month for this stuff,” Just remember that your employer has to do that for every single employee.
WHAT CAN I DO ABOUT IT? First, make sure Tommy Norment doesn’t get re elected. If anyone is thinking about running for office, please do so and take the lifetime politician out of Richmond. He isn’t doing what’s best for the County or City of Williamsburg. He’s doing what’s best for Colonial Williamsburg and the tourism industry while all of us are getting duped. Anyone else hear that the
president of Colonial Williamsburg just got a $100,000 bonus? Think that would have been possible without the TOMMY TAX revenue? Same goes for our local “Tourism” professionals who are now the beneficiaries of a multi million dollar marketing windfall. Vote them out! Here are your current
Board of Supervisors and
City Council Members. Check their voting record and vote out anyone who is asking for your money.
If you are a small business owner, consider bartering with other businesses to reduce the fuel that feeds the government fungus (Taxes). If you own a contracting company and need a web site, partner up with a local web developer and exchange services. No income tax, no business license tax on the exchange of services. Anyone want to start a local bartering exchange? I know I do.
