You might think that the current taxes, permits, and licenses that we have in our communities and States in America are all there to serve the greater good. That is to say, the point of these taxes, permits, and licenses is to as a whole, to make things fairer and safer for not only the general public, but to level the playing field for those inclined to open up businesses and the like. The problem with this viewpoint is that it isn't close to being correct, as not too surprisingly, when power is ceded to various governmental authorities, which oversees and legislates them, this essentially means that the government is permitted to decide who and what to tax, who does or does not get a permit, and when or when not licenses are issued, creating a dynamic that will invariably by design favor some against others.
In point of fact, at the conclusion of our civil war, and the passage of the 13th through 15th amendments, slavery as an institution was a dead letter in America, so that nearly 4 million peoples that formerly were in the bonds of servitude were now free citizens with, in theory, all the incumbent rights of all other citizens of this country. Obviously, especially within the defeated South, to allow freed black men and women to compete for jobs that previously were the dominion of whites, would be intolerable, thereby, various laws were created which would in effect, preclude or make difficult for freed black men to compete against whites. So that, for instance, in many trades and professions that blacks were proficient in, such as shoemaking, stonemasonry, ship building, carpentry, blacksmith, and so forth, laws were enacted, that compelled people in those particular trades to have to pay taxes specifically for that trade, or be licensed, or to have a permit, in which, because most blacks were pecuniary poor, they often were unable tothereby continue in those professions becoming essentially priced out for lack of monetary assets or the ability to pay for these various things.
Anytime that the government decides what is or isn't going to be taxed, licensed, or permitted, and further those legislating these things are working in conjunction with the favored classes or on a quid pro quo basis, than all sorts of verbiage will be created saying all sorts of things in beautiful flowing language, which often translated can be stated into the simple terms of those in power support the ruling class and oppress all other classes. While, no doubt, there are times and reasons for taxes, licenses, and permits to have their place, far too often, these are specifically put into place to protect those in that business from free competition from those that wish or desire to be in the same business.
Every barrier to entry, every tax, every license, and every permit, should in a true free enterprise economy, be carefully scrutinized to see if this is really necessary, whether it is truly for the protection and benefit of the public, and if not, should be phased out and eliminated. The bottom line is that the more bureaucracy in opening any business enterprise, the more red tape, the more hoops that you have to pass through, or palms you have to grease, is a system in which the privileged win, and all others must pay tribute to.