Oregon gets good marks for being small business friendly

by NW Spotlight

A November 8, 2012, article in Entrepreneur titled “Which State Is Best for Small Business?” gives Oregon a grade of “A-” based on a survey earlier this year from Thumbtack.com and the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation. In the actual Thumbtack.com survey, Oregon received an overall grade of “B” in Small Business Friendliness.

click to enlarge

Oregon’s best individual category rating in the 2012 Entrepreneur survey was an “A-” for “Ease of starting a business”, and Oregon’s worst individual rating was an “F” for “Hiring costs”. Click here to see all Oregon’s individual category ratings.

One of the comments in the survey came from a dog trainer in Deschutes County “There isn’t any sales tax in Oregon. That is a huge thing in making it easy to start a business and to operate a business.” A wedding photographer in Columbia County noted “The fees and taxes seem high, and the regulations for some types of businesses are unfriendly.”

Oregon’s good marks for being small business friendly differ from a survey last year by Chief Executive of 550 CEO’s. That survey placed Oregon near the bottom (#33) for maintaining a business-friendly atmosphere.