For the past 10 years I’ve owned and managed a small business selling consulting services to larger businesses. I’ve been fortunate that Minnesota’s business climate has allowed me to support my growing family and work with some great Minnesota businesses. While many of my clients have been based in Minnesota, many others have been based throughout the United States: California, Colorado, and Florida.

Under the Governor Dayton’s proposed tax plan my small business would be required to collect a 5.5% sales tax on our services. This will immediately make my business 5.5% less competitive in Minnesota and around the US. But it’s more than just 5.5%, it a adds a layer of complexity to my day-to-day operations, eating into my overall profitability, and discouraging me from engaging other businesses to support my clients. Taxing professional services will mean not just lower profitability but decreased business activity for many of the great creative service firms Minnesota is known for: design, advertising, architecture.

The past couple years have been some of the most challenging for my business – it’s been a slow and arduous recovery and I’m just now starting to see some of the profitability I once enjoyed. The addition of a sales tax burden on my business will significantly impair my ability to grow my business in Minnesota.

I’m a small business owner, I’d rather not be a smaller business owner. I’m against Governor Dayton’s Sales Tax proposal – I encourage you to vote against it as well.