RI’S BIPOC ENTREPRENEUR + BUSINESS OWNER NEEDS
State leaders have long recognized that Rhode Island’s business climate can and should be more businessfriendly, and have pursued a number of strategies to support these goals in recent years. Beginning in 2015, then-Governor Raimondo issued executive orders promoting regulatory reform and lean government, designed to “change the culture” around business rules and regulations. Among other things, these orders directed the State’s Office of Regulatory Reform to scrub existing rules and regulations to assess their impacts on small business. This effort has enjoyed important successes in reducing the weight of burdensome laws and regulations.20 Among other things, the Department of Business Regulation now offers a hotline/ombudsman service to receive and respond to complaints and concerns raised by the state’s small business owners. These efforts have made important progress, but business advocates also recognize that the real regulatory challenges facing many business owners are not directly due to specific laws or rules. Instead, they result from competing interpretations of existing regulations or unclear direction to front-line staff and other partners. In addition, many challenges result from local rules and regulations, as opposed to those emanating from state government. Examples include procedures for regulating cottage industries and home-based businesses. Both of these areas were cited as challenge areas by interviewed entrepreneurs. These State-led efforts should continue, but should also acknowledge that many small business owners are challenged by the complexity of rules, especially when local and state regulatory schemes come into play. These barriers can be especially pronounced for BIPOC entrepreneurs, who may face language barriers or may be affected by other forms of discrimination. Additional efforts to provide guidance to small business owners should be considered. At the state level, the Department of Business Regulation could consider taking a more active role in directly providing tax and regulatory consultation to small business owners. This effort would build on the “virtual office hours” now offered to new business owners by the RI Department of State, and should be offered in a variety of languages. Similarly, the Department should consider expanding training and professional development opportunities that help local officials better understand the how’s and why’s of regulatory reforms that support a more “small business friendly” set of local rules and regulations. Finally, the Department of Revenue should embrace the recommendation, as presented in the Rhode Island Innovates 2.0 Plan, to create a new Taxpayer Advocate position with a focus on providing tax-related advice and support to small business owners.21 While state agencies lack jurisdiction over local rules related to zoning and licensing, they can support efforts to support reform at the local level. Potential actions might include development of model local statutes that are more “entrepreneur-friendly,” expanded training and technical assistance, and outreach to business to identify the most pressing challenges they face related to local business regulation. An annual summit providing professional development opportunities and sharing leading practices could help to publicize the state’s efforts to become entrepreneur-friendly. Ideally, these efforts should include key local government partners such as SNEAPA, the region’s American Planning Association affiliate, or the Rhode Island League of Cities and Towns.
Market Access Market access refers to programs that help firms enter new markets or develop specialized capabilities related to target clusters and industries. RI Commerce and other key partners support many of these cluster programs. Examples include 401 TechBridge (defense industry), Hope and Main (food), the New England Medical Innovation Center (life sciences), DesignRI, and Polaris, the state’s Manufacturing Extension
20
Rhode Island Office of Regulatory Reform, A New Regulatory System for Rhode Island, February 2020. Available at: http://www.omb.ri.gov/documents/reform/APA/ORR_Final_APA_Report.pdf. 21 Rhode Island Innovates 2.0, pp. 119-120.
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