Small-Business Owners in California Seek Greener Pastures Amid High Taxes and Crime

Commentary For the past 10 years, Armitage Winery has been producing and selling fine wines directly from its Heart of the Mountain Vineyard, perched 1,500 feet above Monterey Bay in Scotts Valley, California. The family-owned business has taken pride in operating its vineyard, tasting room, and wine club from this exclusive location in the heart of the Santa Cruz mountains. But every year, the escalating costs of taxes, insurance, and labor, coupled with what many are calling the government’s “anti-business” attitude, are forcing numerous business to consider moving out of state or at least planning to move. Brandon Armitage, President and Winemaker in the vineyards at Armitage Winery, Scotts Valley, Calif.. (Courtesy of Kelly Bradford) Armitage Winery is just one of 67 percent of California businesses surveyed that report they are unhappy doing business in the Golden State. Of that 67 percent, 30 percent indicate that are currently considering a move, 27 percent say they want to move but can’t afford it, and 10 percent are actively planning a move....