Business Licensing for Musicians Performing in Bridgeport Once Again Discussed at Council Meeting
By Chris Johnson on May 29, 2024
The issue of business licensing requirements for bands and artists playing at Bridgeport venues, was at the forefront, once again, at Monday’s City Council meeting.
The licensing issue was brought to light when on May 6, the owners of Music on Main, Jack “Jackie” and Sommer Brown, announced they were closing due to an email that the said the city was “wanting all performers to file for a city business license.”
The license is $15. However, the cost has not been at the heart of the issue according to those who have spoken out against it. It is believed to be a hassle and a deterrent to musicians, particularly at a small venue like Music on Main that hosts adults as well as children for lessons, bands, a recording studio, and more.
It has also been suggested that it is something that has never come up in other areas of the state.
To read the May 7, 2004 story on Connect-Bridgeport in regard to the matter click HERE
To read about the discussion of the matter at the May 14, 2024 City Council meeting, including those who talked during the public comments portion of the meeting, click HERE
One of the area’s most well-known musicians, Greg Harrison, spoke during the public comment portion of the May 14 meeting and he returned on Tuesday to address the matter again.
“Two weeks ago my questions were why was City Council going after small businesses that have live music and why were they requiring independent musicians to have a city business license,” Harrison said. We kept hearing that you had to look further into it because it’s an ordinance.
“Bridgeport, Opportunity Live Here, that’s what it says on the website. But you are pulling that opportunity away from the fine arts and the entertainment industry in this community all for a few measly bucks.
“Former City Council is the one who made this law so that means the one now has the chance to change it. I’m asking you all to take all independent artists and entertainment both local and out of town off the Bridgeport City Licensing Ordinance and furthermore until this new ordinance comes into effect, business like Music on Main, Mainstreet Station and every other business that has live entertainment in the city limits of Bridgeport will not be held accountable for those artists not having a business license.
"This has been going on for 15 years and all of sudden, boom, it comes out of nowhere. If the former City Council can pass this, the current City Council can change it. Change it in support of the fine arts and entertainment for the City of Bridgeport.”
Mayor Andy Lang responded to the licensing issue during his mayor’s report with a prepared statement.
That statement is as follows:
"The issue at hand is that to obtain a City of Bridgeport business license, you must first register with the State Tax Department per West Virginia code. A city Business License is part of the City Code and has been for as long as anyone can remember. I will refer to this in my comments as a City Business License.
The specific issue is that an email was sent to Music on Main concerning the requirements for such a City Business License. This venue allowed bands and musicians to play to the public. I will refer to these folks as entertainers.
The city manages over 2,600 licenses to conduct business in the city limits. Therefore, the city does have many processes to monitor new and existing business. One of the comments has been that this is a money grab by the city. In the past two years, the city has only collected $11,000 to $12,000 annually in the Amusement B&O taxes with the largest portion coming for the Cinemark Movie Theater. Amusement is one of the 11 classifications set up by the State of West Virginia for the collection of taxes. This is the classification for most entertainers.
One of the topics that has been brought up is that other cities do not require licensing at all. We have researched many West Virginia cities online and find no “exemption” from a City Business License for entertainers. We looked at Wheeling, Huntington, Clarksburg, Fairmont and Morgantown. We also looked at Charleston and talked to them. Charleston replied with an email to Bridgeport with this quote, “All vendors must register with the city.” The City of Parkersburg requires a business license for “theatrical performances” which is a $20 per week cost. We cannot help it if other cities choose to ignore State Regulations.
Some have asked the city to completely eliminate this license requirement for all entertainers. This, however, does not exempt them from registration with the West Virginia State Tax Department. As I understand, this is a concern of entertainers, but this is a state requirement. The requirement of a City Business License is there to provide a level of protection for our residents. Without the requirement of a City Business License, food vendors could set up anywhere, anytime competing against our brick and mortar restaurants. Door to door sales would happen anywhere, anytime with no oversite from the city and create many more examples of what we don’t want in our city.
Another comment was about the ordinance that was put in place back in 2009. This ordinance was revised to reflect our changes due to the adoption of Home Rule. This had no effect on the requirement of a City Business License which was in place many years prior to this change in 2009.
If you conduct business in the city, state law requires you to be registered with the West Virginia Tax Department and have a City Business License. State Law does allow for exemptions for state registration. The city has honored these exemptions meaning that if you are exempt from registration with the state you are also exempt from the City Business License requirement. The registration for an exemption has always been in place and at no cost. The exemptions were again explained to Music on Main in the email dated, April 9th, 2024. The general requirements for an exemption are no employees, you are exempt from collecting sales and tax and you make less than $4,000 per year. The city staff and Council have worked together to make the exemption option easier to understand and available online.
In conclusion, the laws and ordinances were all in place for many years prior to the current owners of Music on Main purchasing the property and opening for business. The city has an open-door policy and staff are always available and happy to assist all new and existing businesses in navigating the regulations that govern our city. While the exemption form was not easy to find online, we have corrected that issue and we have revised our form to clarify the state requirements for exemption. We value the input of the community and businesses and strive to make it equitable for all businesses to thrive in Bridgeport.”
Interim City Manager and Police Chief Mark Rogers added that there has never been a fee for anyone who is exempt and moving forward the city will not charge anyone who is exempt.
Rogers also said the city wants to know if anybody finds the exemption forms difficult to find or understand, then contact them.
“We want to work with you,” Rogers said. “We want a place that you guys are very viable with what you do whether it’s a venue or as an entertainer.”
Also on Tuesday, Council approved three separate acts of new business – the authorization payment of a B&O Tax Grant, a revision to the Coal Severance Budget for the 2023-24 fiscal year and the approval of a contract with Benchmark Planning in the amount of $92,057.50 plus a 10 percent contingency for a total of $101,263.25 for the city’s comprehensive plan for 2024.
Editor's Note:Top photo is of Harrison, middle photo shows Lang and bottom photo is of Rogers.
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