Editor’s note: This commentary is by Marc Sherman, who is vice chair of government relations for the Vermont Retail & Grocers Association and owner of Stowe Mercantile and The Boutique in Stowe.
[T]oday’s news announced the governor and Speaker now support mandatory paid leave. Another headline in VTDigger announced the legislative interest in imposing a carbon tax. The tax on shopping bags is in play. The governor still advocates for a payroll tax to fund health care initiatives. New taxes of all sorts are proposed for clean water. Sugar sweetened beverages tax, sales tax on candy and bottled water, increased tobacco taxes and re-introducing a tax on apparel are all in discussion.
Vermont employers are struggling with a host of fees, taxes and mandates passed last session. The minimum wage increase, while good for Vermonters, creates the effects of upward pressure on other wages for many retailers that already pay well above that threshold.
The health care assessment increases each year, 2015 is $520 per full-time equivalent employee, which impacts many employers whether they offer health insurance or not.
The state unemployment base wage increased this year which means every employer pays more for unemployment insurance for every employee, regardless of the employer’s historical rating for claims.
Property taxes continue to be an extreme burden on businesses with no relief in sight.
We pay the very best wages we can, we offer benefits that are meaningful yet within the scope of fiscal responsibility, we contribute to every organization that asks for help and we offer a first job to more of Vermont’s young adults than any other industry.
Our members located along the New Hampshire state border and the New York state border see their prospects for success and longevity decrease each year as new taxes, employment costs and overhead are increased by the Legislature. These retailers and grocers are at an extreme disadvantage compared to their competition across state lines.
GMO labeling has become a major concern for retailers and grocers. We all want to know what is in our food but as the rules have been drafted, retailers are going to absorb far more of the responsibility for this law than anyone imagined. If a grocer husks a single ear of corn, it is proposed that the retailer then must take responsibility for signage and documentation as to the GMO content of that product, not the grower, not the distributor, not the wholesaler.
Internet sellers are exempt from the GMO labeling requirement. Vermont retailers are at an immediate disadvantage from Internet companies. It doesn’t matter what you think about the GMO law, online sellers have no responsibility for labeling or for documentation, which decreases their cost of doing business.
The fees and licenses for home caterers, for restaurant seating capacity, and commercial bakeries have been approved to increase by more than 100 percent in some cases. Home bakers, food processors and seafood vendors are seeing increased license fees as well.
Any one or two of these issues may not be that detrimental but combined it’s crushing.
All of these issues are going on and yet everyone wants their Main Street alive and vibrant with locally owned retailers and small, locally sourced grocers.
Small business is the backbone of Vermont. Traditional retail is losing out. Small town grocers are disappearing. Traditional Vermont country stores are becoming a thing of the past. The very hub and center for many villages in Vermont cannot afford to stay in business; for many towns this is the defining attribute of their community.
There are many factors putting pressure on all varieties of retailers and grocers. Many of the issues need a national solution, sales tax fairness, cyber-security, patent trolls, and minimum wage to name a few.
What we need right now, is for the Vermont Legislature to not push any harder on our businesses and let us recover from the still lagging poor economy. As owners, we’re no different than our employees, we work hard, we want to contribute to our communities, we want to improve our lives and make a difference in the lives of those around us. We too juggle family and work, and we worry how we’re going to pay our bills. And as owners, we especially worry how we’re going to pay our staff when business is bad, but somehow we always do because it’s the right thing and we care about our employees. We pay the very best wages we can, we offer benefits that are meaningful yet within the scope of fiscal responsibility, we contribute to every organization that asks for help and we offer a first job to more of Vermont’s young adults than any other industry.
Vermont’s small businesses need relief. We need it now before it’s too late. Let the economy recover further and as it grows, there will be a time when we can afford to do more and we gladly will. But now is not the time to burden employers more than we already are.
