Voluntary Licensing »
Apparently the time has come to purchase yet another license from the City of Charlotte. Lucky me. Turns out I got one for half price just two short months ago, as there was only one quarter of the year left. Figure that out.
In any case, it led me to think. Why be licensed? You could argue that the city licensing process adds a certain validity to a company. And I might agree, but at the same time, anyone at all could walk in, fill out the forms, and also be licensed. There is no inspection, no certification, no recourse for any customers who were wronged.
Which leads to an obvious conclusion: If there is no service provided, why is it mandatory? Seems to me that it's there so that the city can rake in yet more money. Instead of that, why not open up licensing to anyone? The Better Business Bureau, the Chamber of Commerce, your Aunt Betty. If you want to impress a certain demographic, you buy the appropriate license(s) for your business, which indicates you adhere to certain principles. If there is no such adhesion, you don't buy one. Seems pretty straightforward to me.
Interestingly enough, the city can actually go so far as to say that not only must every business be licensed (by them), and that the owners of the business do not have to actually receive notice of said requirement, but that only the city can offer duplicates of the license and that anyone else who produces one is guilty of a misdemeanor!
Let me tell you a secret. I reproduced that section with a scanner. Draw your own conclusions.
