The call is growing stronger for a single mobile business licence for contractors working throughout the Lower Mainland.
Next week, officials from the Tri-Cities Chamber of Commerce will talk to Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam and Port Moody city councils about the need to have one mobile permit for any company travelling between Hope and West Vancouver.
Aaron Robinson, the Tri-Cities Chamber of Commerce public policy advisor, will unveil the results of a survey taken last month by local chamber members as well as members with 11 other boards of trade and chambers of commerce in the Lower Mainland.
Of those who responded — representing such sectors as landscaping, home care, financial consulting, tradespeople and photographers — more than 80% want a single mobile business licence for the Lower Mainland.
Still, some cautioned on the potential cost, warning if the fee structure is too high it would deter small businesses from reaching out.
Ann Peterson of the Surrey Board of Trade said combining the four current mobile business licence programs makes sense as it would save time and money for many companies.
The four current programs are:
• Fraser Valley: Abbotsford, Chilliwack, Hope, Langley city and township, Maple Ridge, Mission, Pitt Meadows and Surrey;
• Metro Vancouver West: Burnaby, Delta, New Westminster, Richmond, Surrey and Vancouver;
• the North Shore;
• and the Tri-Cities.
Mobile business licences allow companies to operate across local government boundaries through the purchase of a single add-on permit — on top of a base business licence.
In the Tri-Cities, the cost is $165 to allow contractors to travel freely between Coquitlam, PoCo and PoMo. The program has grown in popularity since it launched on Jan. 1, 2013: More than 230 mobile permits were purchased last year versus some 200 in 2014.
Michael Hind, the Tri-Cities' Chamber executive director, said he'd like to see the Tri-City councils pursue a regional mobile business model and develop education around it.
A spokesperson for B.C.'s ministry of Small Business and Red Tape Reduction said there's movement afoot.
"Given the success of the mobile business licence program, the province continues to promote its development and expansion, making it easier for businesses to operate," the ministry said in an email.
