The Sylva town board is considering converting their business fee schedule from one of flat fees to one based on gross-receipts. The rationale is that the new system would “help fund costs that large businesses help create.” That is as logical as the length of pipeline argument the City of Asheville used to justify charging higher water rates for consumers near the treatment plant who had water pumped past them to downtown users. The real reason appears to be that the new system would garner more revenue for the municipality.
One surmountable foreseen difficulty is that data concerning the sales of privately-held corporations is confidential. The board members were advised the solution would be to require businesses to complete forms certifying receipts.
