Entrepreneur Files Federal Constitutional Lawsuit against Boston
Institute for Justice Joins Aspiring Small-Businessman To Defend Basic Civil Rights and Challenge Entrenched Cartel
WEB RELEASE: February 18, 2009
CONTACT:
Bob Ewing
(703) 682-9320
[Economic Liberty]
Arlington, Va.—Erroll Tyler has been trying for seven years to open his small business in the Boston-area. Today, he took a major step toward that goal by teaming up with the Institute for Justice (IJ), the nation’s leading legal advocate for the rights of entrepreneurs, to file a major federal lawsuit against the City of Boston.
The aspiring entrepreneur’s dream is to launch Nautical Tours, a cutting-edge amphibious vehicle tour service based in Cambridge, Mass. But, like countless cities across the country, Boston appears to be using its licensing power to protect existing businesses from honest competition by denying others their basic right to earn a living.
“It should not take seven years and a team of lawyers to open a small business,” said Jeff Rowes, a staff attorney at IJ. “We’re in a ‘Yes We Can’ era, but Boston still has a ‘No You Can’t’ government.”
Even though Erroll’s vehicles won’t pick up or drop off passengers in Boston, the city insists that he needs a special sightseeing license. Boston’s apparent problem with Nautical Tours—which is certified by the state—is that Erroll’s passengers will be enjoying the scenery as they pass through the city limits. Were he in business now, Erroll would face fines and a month in jail if his passengers were caught looking out the window.
In a crueler twist, officials will not even consider granting Erroll the license because of a so-called “moratorium” the city declared in 1995 in the name of the Big Dig—even though the public-works project fully opened to traffic more than three years ago.
The evidence is overwhelming that the real reason behind keeping Erroll off the streets and out of the water is to protect the seven-company cartel that controls all the existing sightseeing licenses. There are serious concerns about insider-dealing in the Boston sightseeing industry. Based on public records the City of Boston produced in response to a Public Records Act request, there were only 96 sightseeing licenses in circulation in 2000, but that number grew to 107 by 2008. These licenses appear to have been created and distributed to insiders in direct violation of the moratorium and without any public disclosure or input.
“Economic liberty is a basic civil right that cannot be trampled on simply to benefit special interest groups,” said IJ Staff Attorney Christina Mulligan.
Erroll wants to run two Hydra-Terras, which are built specifically for tourism and certified by the Coast Guard. Each of his drivers will be a licensed captain with extensive safety training. Additionally, Hydra-Terras are outfitted with the latest environmental features and, because of their ingenious design, are the safest amphibious vehicles on the market.
“The Institute for Justice seeks not only to vindicate Erroll’s right to economic liberty but also to challenge the premise of Boston’s sightseeing license regime: that government can exclude someone from a lawful occupation just to protect a group of industry insiders,” said Rowes. “Erroll’s victory in this lawsuit will establish important constitutional precedent protecting entrepreneurs across the country.”
IJ President and General Counsel Chip Mellor said, “This lawsuit is an important part of the Institute for Justice’s nationwide campaign to restore economic liberty to all Americans by defending their constitutional right to earn an honest living.”
