Cutting Red Tape From Coast To Coast

IJ is always happy to sue the government to defend an entrepreneur’s right to earn an honest living. But as any small-business owner knows, there are countless government policies that may be technically constitutional yet still inflict death by a thousand cuts and make it difficult—if not impossible—for entrepreneurs to truly thrive. 

That’s where IJ’s Cities Work grassroots activism initiative comes in.

Launched in early 2022, Cities Work partners with cities across the country to identify and rectify the regulatory barriers that make it too expensive, time-consuming, and complicated to start a small business. Two years into the initiative, we have engaged with more than 425 entrepreneurs and provided custom policy recommendations to 15 cities—and counting!

When we first partnered with Fort Worth, Texas, the city’s website provided little guidance to residents trying to start a business, meeting just one out of the five criteria on which we graded cities’ online services in our Barriers to Business report. Within a matter of weeks, the city took our advice and revamped its entire website, turning it into one of the best one-stop shops in the country and improving its score to four out of five. 

In June 2023, we were invited by St. Louis’ Board of Aldermen to partner with their new Special Committee on Reducing Red Tape to help get the Gateway City’s government out of the way of small-business owners. We helped the board pass an ordinance to make it much easier for small restaurants to obtain a liquor license—something crucial for most restaurants’ success—and are currently helping it repeal a prohibition on food trucks operating within 150 feet of brick-and-mortar establishments.

Our largest project, also in Missouri, is a partnership with Kansas City’s Small Business Task Force. In March 2024, we launched a report detailing the city’s regulatory processes, feedback from entrepreneurs on their struggles to get their businesses going, and eight groups of policy recommendations. Our celebratory launch event drew over 75 attendees, including members of the City Council, entrepreneurs, and the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation’s CEO.* We are working with the task force to turn our policy recommendations into draft ordinances to put before the City Council.

The Philadelphia Mayor’s Office has partnered with us to streamline the process for starting a food business (see our flowchart mapping out the cumbersome process of opening a restaurant in the City of Brotherly Love at right). And we’re working with Shreveport, Louisiana, to simplify the city’s development process.

The reforms we fight for make a real difference in an entrepreneur’s life. As Fort Worth restaurant owner Mama Gina told us, “I never went into business thinking I was going to be a millionaire. … I want to be able to take care of my husband who is in a nursing home, maintain my home, and be of service to my community.”

IJ has always fought for the little guy. Cities Work is proud to do just that in city halls around the country.

Jennifer McDonald is IJ’s assistant director of activism special projects and leads the Cities Work initiative.