Small business Oregon

BEND — Oregon Business & Industry and the Oregon State Chamber of Commerce recently surveyed hundreds of small employers to share their thoughts on Oregon’s business climate.

Oregon’s local businesses are overtaxed and overwhelmed by rapidly changing legislation, according to the survey results.

And they don’t think lawmakers care about their success.

The survey, conducted in late January and early February by the trade association, received responses from 445 small businesses throughout the state and in a variety of industries.

Participants do not believe that Oregon’s business climate, which they rated poorly, will improve in the coming year, according to the survey.

And by a wide margin, they believe lawmakers don’t care about the success of their businesses and that state agencies are more interested in finding fault than helping them comply, according to an OBI press release.

The survey’s findings include:

• 74% of respondents say that regulations affecting business change so frequently that it is hard to keep up with what they’re supposed to do.

• 71% of respondents say that state agencies seem more interested in finding wrongdoing (even when there isn’t any) than in helping businesses like theirs comply with regulations.

• 18% of respondents believe that state lawmakers care about the success of their businesses.

• 48% of respondents feel comfortable calling a state agency for help or clarification about a regulation.

• 41% of respondents say they’re considering closing, selling or moving their businesses because of taxes, Oregon’s regulatory environment or a combination of the two.

• On a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being “great,” more than 80% of survey participants rate Oregon’s business climate below a six.

• 7% of respondents believe the state’s business climate will improve in the coming year.

The top issues facing respondents’ businesses, in descending order, are increased labor costs, taxation, increased supply costs, and laws and regulations around employment and human resources.

“Oregon is at an inflection point,” Angela Wilhelms, president and CEO of OBI, said in a prepared statement.

“Unless leadership in Salem starts taking the concerns of employers seriously, innovators and job creators increasingly will look to grow elsewhere, taking opportunities for Oregonians with them. Sadly, these results were not surprising to us.”

Visit the website oregonbusinessindustry.com for a full slide deck of survey responses and to learn more about the Growth and Innovation Roadmap.