Paul Sullivan, in his Wealth Matters column this week, writes about one of small businesses’ disadvantages — they do not have the resources that the big companies do to wield political influence. But, as Paul points out, that does not mean they can’t wield any influence.

He cites, for instance, the owner of a livery service in New York who joined forces with other car service owners to lobby the state to establish a workers’ compensation fund for livery drivers and to repeal a state tax on livery fares. It took a year and a half, with the lobbying costs split among the owners, but they eventually got what they wanted.

Those of you who are small-business owners, tell us about your experiences in trying to get a local or state government to change a law or rule. Did you work on your own, hire someone to lobby on your behalf or, as with the livery drivers, get together with other small-business owners to promote your cause?

Article source: http://bucks.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/01/25/wielding-influence-even-if-youre-small/?partner=rss&emc=rss