Business Licenses and Permits

The first reading of an ordinance designed to change business license fees in Sturgis, South Dakota, has been approved by Sturgis City Council.

The ordinance proposes that businesses operating in the city permanently will not have to pay any fee for their business license, while temporary businesses will have to pay $25 a year.

According to the Rapid City Journal, the change has been met with opposition from local business owners, who claim that making temporary firms pay for a permit will deter them from setting up in the area.

The opposition led to changes in the original draft, which proposed charging $25 for any business open for longer than five months and $600 for those open less than this period.

Now, a second reading must be approved before the change becomes law.

Rick Bush, director of Community Development for the city, explained that the $600 figure reflects the amount vendors must pay when setting up during the annual Sturgis Motorcycle Rally, one of the biggest motorcycle events in the world.

Tags: business licenses, business permits, licenses, permits