We’ve had a few days since Election Day to examine the outcomes and consider the effects of voters’ decisions. It’s clear that Republicans swept most of the country, and now control both houses of Congress and the presidency. However, California remains a staunchly blue state. Four out of five of the Los Angeles County Supervisors are now Democrats. The Democratic Party has come within a breath of controlling a supermajority in the California Legislature. Most of the media coverage has been focused on the implications of the unexpected national results. But it is also important for the business community to assess what the results mean to us and what’s next for the San Fernando Valley. Congratulations to our new and re-elected state legislators and county supervisors on their victories. We look forward to working with you, and we have some messages we want you to hear. The business community has taken some hard knocks over the last year. It’s worth revisiting what the business community represents, and what we need from our elected officials. The San Fernando Valley is home to more than 1.8 million people, or 40 percent of Los Angeles’ population. We have businesses from every sector, and people from all walks of life. These people are leading innovative, dynamic businesses which underpin a growing economy. If there’s one thing our lawmakers should know, it is this: Help our business community thrive so we can drive our economy forward. A growing, healthy economy provides jobs, security for families, opportunities for our young people and an improved quality of life for us all. The business community is not the bad guy. Business owners aren’t all rich. They aren’t all millionaires. Sometimes, a business is just one person trying hard to get by, make a good living doing what they’re good at and what they love. Small businesses and large businesses create jobs. Some of these are direct jobs; others are created when they purchase goods and services from other local businesses. Successful business owners want to employ good people. They know that the only way to retain good people is to pay them a decent wage with decent benefits. Employers have a strong incentive to treat their employees decently. However, it is difficult for employers to provide good paying jobs when regulations continue to pile up against them. Don’t place undue burdens on businesses, because the cost of complying will ultimately impact the workers and their jobs. When you are considering a program you want to fund with increased fees, the amount may sound small. But now consider every agency, regulator or utility that has the ability to levy a fee on every stage of doing business. How the city, county, state and federal governments might raise business tax, property tax, parcel tax, and excise taxes just a little bit more. How increases in minimum wage increase the cost of paid sick days, workers compensation and overtime. How many dollars do these fees, these obligations, and these taxes add up to? Our lawmakers have the best of intentions. But good intentions don’t guarantee good results. The burden of regulations will often weaken the institutions this nation relies on to provide jobs. It is not that employers intend to undermine and exploit their workers when they violate regulations; more often than not, employees are unaware as well. This is because California has become oversaturated with pointless rules and regulations that only serve to confuse businesses and cripple the economy. Or they result in lawsuits that benefit no one but the trial lawyers. We all want to ensure businesses are run properly. However, businesses often don’t realize they are not in compliance with the hundreds of detailed requirements, and they are sued every day. Or consider the intricate requirements of what information must be listed on each paycheck, and how many businesses are taken to court over tiny violations. So we congratulate our new lawmakers, and we welcome the opportunity to work with you. But when we oppose a fee you think is small, or an additional regulation you think should be easy to comply with, consider where the business community is coming from. Consider what we add to the economy, and whether you want to celebrate innovation or bog us down in the minutiae of overregulation and fees. Stuart Waldman is president of the Valley Industry and Commerce Association, a Sherman Oaks-based business advocacy organization that represents L.A. County employers at the local, state and federal levels of government.
